Fire Emblem: Swords of Dragon's Fire
by Always have a little Faith
Summary: Arthiel, a girl with a troubled past, washes up on the Sacae Plains after running away and Lyn, a member of the Lorca tribe, finds her. Together, Arthiel the tactician and Lyn the swordswoman get dragged into a quest to save the world. Multiple Pairings.
1. Prologue: A Girl From The Plains

_**Lannie:**I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Her storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

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_**Prologue: A Girl From The Plains**_

**A girl with crystal blue eyes and a short, chin-length shock of bright orange hair run through the woods, nimbly dodging the trees, branches, roots and other things that whiz by.**

_Running. Running is all I do now, all I can remember doing. I think I've blocked out all the rest, I don't want to be haunted by it all. I can remember some things that pass through, some good things…I know I wasn't always alone. _

**She glances to her right and sees a mass of black fur running alongside her a few feet away, his four paws beating the ground solidly as he runs. He has an odd mane that flows down his spine; it's of a faded dark bluish color, like moonlight reflecting off of a lake at night. His eyes are the same shade and he has markings all throughout his fur in the same dark blue color; the tip of his tail, his shoulders, his paws, his cheeks and just around his eyes as well as one on his forehead. The markings are intricate designs of moons and patterns.**

_I remember running with my black furry friend…what was his name again? …Oh yes, that's right, his name was Lunar. I can't remember who he is, or why he's with me, but he is, he always was I think. I've tried to think back, think of why he's here, why I'm here, but I can't. I really have blocked everything out…I think,_

**A yell erupts from behind her at a thick flaming arrow is shot at a tree in her path. The fire spreads and burns the branch, causing it to fall. She dodges left and it swings past her, missing her. As she moves, the little bells attached to the end of the ribbon around her neck, the little bells that hang down to her knees at the back, they jingle.**

_Accursed things, they're just alerting the people we're running from to our presence. Wait, why are we running again? Oh yes…we're running from __**them**__. We're running from the people who tried to hurt us, to hurt us when we did good…although they called it bad. I know I've blocked out almost everything…but I remember four things; my training, Lunar, my name…and the people that destroyed my home, my family and my life…I run from them…because they still want to hurt me…_

**They reach the end of the woods, where they find a cliff with flowing water – a waterfall. She glances behind her, watching shadows and lights in the distance come closer like impending doom. She looks at Lunar, who nods and they count to three before diving off, into the turbulent waters below…**

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_-------- __**When you wake from a nightmare, everything is supposed to be fine, right?**__ --------_

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"Are you awake?" A voice woke the girl from her nightmare. She blinked her eyes repeatedly, adjusting to the natural light that filtered in through a hole in the tent roof – wait, she was in a tent? When had this happened? Where was she?

The orange-haired girl opened her eyes completely and sat up slowly, looking at the girl who had spoken, one that looked her age. The girl had deep green hair tied in a high ponytail that hung straight down to her waist, if not further. She also wore a blue dress that ran down to her knees with yellow trim that sported ¾ sleeves and an open slit on both sides of her waist at her hips. She had brown knee-high boots, dark blue open-fingered gloves and enchanting emerald eyes.

"Where am I?" the orange-haired girl managed to choke out.

"I found you unconscious on the plains near the river; you were covered in cuts and scrapes and drenched but nothing I couldn't fix with a vulnerary. I am Lyn of the Lorca tribe. You're safe now," the emerald-haired girl smiled warmly. "Who are you? Can you remember your name?"

"Arthiel," she replied simply. At was one of the four things she knew, one of the four things she remembered about herself, something she hadn't pushed away into forgotten memories.

"Your name is Arthiel? What an odd-sounding name…," Lyn mused. "But pay me no mind. It is a good name. I see by your attire that you are a traveler."

Arthiel looks herself over, remembering if this was what she had been wearing in the nightmare…memory…whatever that had been.

She wore a form-fitting strapless with loose fitting t-shirt sleeves, all in a few shades of blue. Her shorts were of mid-thigh length and dark blue, a contrast to the pale color of her shirt. She also had a golden belt with a blue stone in the middle buckled loosely around her waist, lightweight brown boots that ran up to her knees, a thick brown belt strap around her left thigh and both her arms were wrapped from her elbows to her knuckles to form sort of open-fingered gloves out of white cloth that were tied tightly together with brown straps. And then of course, there was that ribbon around her neck; the blue one that split in two and ran down to her knees at the back with a little golden bell on the end.

She was missing one thing however – her cloak. The huge dark grey tattered cloak that hung loose on her shoulders, obviously too big, and covered her petite frame by allowing her to hide her arms inside as well as the rest of her body, for it stretched down to her ankles. She usually also had the hood up, shadowing her entire face to hide to bright orange hair and crystal blue eyes that stood out sorely.

"Where's my--" but Lyn interrupted her, still smiling.

"Your cloak? It's outside on a line, drying. It was too thick to let dry on you, so I took the liberty of setting it out to dry, hope you don't mind," Lyn replied.

"No I don't, thank you," Arthiel nodded.

"So traveler, what brings you to the Sacae Plains? And more importantly, why be unconscious by the river, completely soaked?" Lyn pondered. "Would you share your story with me?"

Unfortunately for the kind-hearted plains girl, Arthiel was just as lost as she for information about what had happened. The nightmare was all she had.

"Actually Lyn, I…I can't seem to remember much really. I can remember running from people, and some studies I did, but…not much else before that. I do know at least my name and my age, they stick to me no matter what," Arthiel replied, frowning.

"How old are you?" Lyn questioned. "If you don't mind me asking, that is."

"It's alright, I don't mind," Arthiel smiled. "I'm nineteen I believe. You?"

"The same," Lyn returned her smile. "It's nice to have someone else here with me now…what about you? How come you were by the river?"

"It's like I said, I honestly can't remember much else…except for someone who was with me…Lunar. I know he was with me, but I can't remember why…"

The girl looked around the tent wildly, trying to spot the black furry creature, but she couldn't see him anywhere.

"Would he be a black wolf with strange markings?" Lyn questioned.

"Yes, why?" Arthiel answered, still looking around. "Would you know where he is?'

"Yes, he's lying down outside, keeping watch. I found him with you, watching over you. Terrible pain to try and help you when there's a wolf snarling at me and trying to bite my hands off," Lyn commented, laughing a little at the look on Arthiel's face.

"Oh I'm so sorry! I apologize for his behavior!" Arthiel exclaimed.

"Don't worry about it Arthiel, I'm sure he's just being protective of his master and—

Suddenly a distance crashing was heard and bird cries echoed outside.

"Huh? What was that noise? I'll go see what's happening. Arthiel, wait here for me," Lyn told the girl before getting up and walking to the tent exit.

She stood in the sunlight outside and peered across the field to look at two figures approaching a nearby village. They were tall and muscled but looked dirty and they carried large axes with them, mischievous looks painted on their faces.

Lyn's eyes widened and she ran back inside where Arthiel was sitting on the bed, tidying up her belongings into her pack. The orange-haired girl looked up at the sight of Lyn rushing back in.

"Oh no! Bandits! They must have come down from the Bern Mountains!" Lyn announced frightfully. They're heading towards the local villages, probably planning to raid them. I…I have to stop them!" Lyn exclaimed, shuffling across the tent to pick up her long thin blade, sheathing it on the holster at her waist. "If that's all of them, I think I can handle them on my own. You'll be safe in here, Arthiel."

"No way! You can't do this alone!" Arthiel shook her head, jumping to her feet.

"What? You want to help? Well, can you use a weapon?" Lyn asked.

"No but I…I'm a tactician, I've studied all sorts of battle strategies," Arthiel explained. "It's one of the four things I remember clearly."

"Hmm…a strategist by trade? An interesting profession Arthiel. Very well. We'll go together!" Lyn declared, smiling. Arthiel nodded and the two ran outside, where Lunar noticed his master and got up, walking over to nuzzle her right hand lovingly.

"Hey Lunar," Arthiel whispered happily, patting him fondly on the head. Lyn had already continued a few feet and glanced back to see Arthiel had stopped with Lunar.

"Over here!" Lyn called to them and they looked up, nodding before running over.

"If you want to help Arthiel, I could use your advice. I'll protect you, so stay close to me and Lunar, since he'll do a fair job of protecting you from what I gathered earlier," Lyn told the other girl.

"Deal," Arthiel smiled.

The two girls turned to see that one of the two bandits was heading their way, axe in hand. The other, who seemed to be the boss, stayed back a bit, watching.

"Uh-oh, looks like he's seen us Arthiel," Lyn announced.

"Just stand your ground Lyn, you have the advantage in this situation, you with a blade and him with an axe," Arthiel reassured her. "its part of the weapon triangle, blade beats axe, axe beats lance, lance beats blade. You'll be fine as long as you're quicker on your feet than him."

"I am, that I can assure you," Lyn smiled. When he was about five feet away Arthiel stood by Lunar and told Lyn to go right, it was his weaker-looking side. The green-haired girl nodded and took off, light on her feet, rushing her opponent.

She dodged the swing of his axe easily and brought her blade up, catching him up the side and he cried out in pain. When he dropped to the ground, he tried to throw his axe out and hit Lyn but she jumped out of the way again.

Seeing that he wasn't going anywhere, the girls nodded to one another and took off through the field towards the other bandit, Lunar dashing after them.

They stopped a few feet away from him and he regarded them with an evil smirk. "This is amusing, two girls and a mutt, you don't look so tough," he cackled with laughter.

"Overconfidence is always a weak point. Separate a bit to cover more ground," Arthiel whispered to Lyn, who nodded before taking a few side steps.

"What's this? You intend to fight me? For real?" the bandit asked, laughing. "That's rich! Who do you think you are? You think you can stand up to Batta the Beast?"

"Looks like we were wrong in thinking we could do this on our own Lyn. I highly doubt we could best a bandit of his caliber," Arthiel shook her head, looking defeated. Seeing this submission, Lyn picked up on it and sighed sadly, her sword arm hanging loose.

"That's what I like to hear!" Batta smiled, taking a few steps towards Arthiel. "Poor little girlie, ya look like you're lost 'round here, not from the plains at all, a fine prize."

He approached her again, making Lunar growl fiercely. "Well, well, well, protective mutt, I might have to get rid of you to take these pretty ladies won't I? That won't be much of a--" He was cut off by a blade piercing him through the stomach from behind.

He looked down, shock printed across his features. "What? How…How did you—"

He crumpled to the ground, twitching and looked up at the two young women. "A warrior should always boast of his strength and plans after the defeat or submission of his opponent, never during the battle, for it is a distraction," Arthiel smiled, words from her training echoing in her mind.

Batta's eyes closed and the two girls sighed heavily before beginning to walk back towards Lyn's tent. Lunar sniffed at the bandit before shaking his head as if in repulsion and trotting off after them.

"Phew. That was close, I sorely underestimated him. Sorry if I worried you," Lyn told her companion, who merely laughed.

"Don't worry about it Lyn, I knew I just had to distract him long enough for you to sneak up and hit him," Arthiel smiled. "You did a wonderful job; don't know what you're apologizing for."

"Thank you…," Lyn returned the smile warmly. "I'll need to be stronger though if I'm going to survive…strong enough that no one can defeat me."

"Someone's an optimist!" Arthiel giggled.

"I try!" Lyn laughed alongside her. "Good work Arthiel, let's go home!_  
_

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_-------- __**What if nightmares are only the beginning? What if there is more to come? **__--------_

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"Good morning, Arthiel! Are you awake yet?" Lyn asked as Arthiel's eyes began to flutter open the next morning. She was lying on the bed in the tent again but this time Lunar slept at her side, curled up and warm. Her cloak lay on the chair beside the bed, now fully dry.

She looked up at Lyn, who was smiling and somehow, this was contagious, for Arthiel smiled too. "That fight yesterday must have taken a lot out of you," Lyn commented. "You fell asleep a little while after we arrived back here."

"I guess it did!" Arthiel laughed. "I may have studied these arts, that much I know, but I haven't practiced them in the field completely yet! I think that's why I'm so exhausted!"

"Say Arthiel…I want to talk to you about something…," Lyn began, much more serious now. Arthiel's face darkened, thinking she wanted to speak about her past again, to see if she could remember anything else. "Don't worry, it's not to press you about yourself, I've learned you like your privacy, as does everyone. It's about something else…"

"Fire away," Arthiel smiled, relieved.

"You have some experience in the ways of war, I can see. Would you allow me to travel with you?" Lyn requested.

"Are you allowed? I mean, I left home on my own but…have you asked the higher ups?" Arthiel laughed, smiling.

"What? You…want me to get permission from my parents?" Lyn asked. Arthiel smiles, waiting for Lyn to see it was a joke. Sadly, Lyn does not and her face darkens.

"My…my mother and father…died six months ago. My people—The Lorca—they don't…I'm the last of my tribe. Bandits attacked, and…they killed so many people. The tribe was scattered. My father was our chieftain, and I wanted to protect our people. But I'm so young and our people are so old fashioned. They wouldn't follow a woman. No one would follow me," Lyn told her sadly.

"I would," Arthiel stated simply. Lyn's head snapped up to look at her, shocked but then she smiled and a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Really?"

"Of course, you're a wonderful person Lyn, set on protecting those around you, whether you know them or not, like you did for me. And I'm sure you're a great leader," Arthiel explained. "You took me in when I was lost, and I don't remember much but you don't press me about it, because I don't want to talk about it. I thank you for that and I trust you greatly. I'm just sorry I made you remember the type of bad memories I'm trying to forget as well…"

Lyn sniffled and wiped the tear away, closing her eyes. "It's me who should be sorry; it's ok that you brought it up. It's just…I've been along for so long…No. No more. I will shed no more tears."

She opened her eyes and looked at Arthiel, smiling. "Thank you Arthiel, for you trust and your kind words, even though we have known each other for merely a day. I'm better now. Arthiel I want—I must become stronger, so that I may avenge my father's death!"

"There's the optimistic Lyn I know!" Arthiel exclaimed, smiling widely.

"Yesterday's battle taught me something you know," Lyn told her.

"Oh?" Arthiel asked, intrigued.

"I won't become stronger by sitting here alone. Arthiel, tell me you'll train me, that you'll let me travel with you!" Lyn exclaimed happily, hope dancing in her bright eyes.

"Of course I will Lyn! You saved my life and after telling me the story of your parents' death, I'm compelled to help you, no matter what! We'll travel together then, you, me…and of course Lunar!" Arthiel giggled with happiness.

"You will? That's wonderful! Thank you! Oh, thank you! We'll be better off working together, I know it. You'll be my wonderful tactician and I'll be your peerless warrior along with our trusted companion, the black wolf Lunar! Wan can do it! Right?" Lyn managed to say all in one exited breath, making Arthiel giggle again.

"Hmm…lemme think," Arthiel began, looking puzzled before laughing and smiling. "Of course!"

Lyn smiled and nodded before grabbing her pack and beginning to pack the belongings she needed. Arthiel did the same with what she had not finished the day before. Lunar was still curled up on the bed, watching them as they went along.

While packing, Lyn absentmindedly spoke her thoughts. "And maybe you can learn more about what you'd remember as well travel…"

Arthiel froze a moment and Lunar's ears perked up before she relaxed and continued packing. "Maybe…"

_Or learn more about pushing it away and forgetting it… _

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_-------- __**What if everything we do, every step we take, only brings us close to Destiny? **__--------_

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_**Lannie:**__ Alright so there's the first chapter. Just a little story I've had shoved in some obscure folder of my laptop for some time. Hope you liked it, it took me forever to touch up this prologue chapter but I managed it finally. I actually rewrote Arthiel's nightmare like three or four times before I was satisfied. Anyway, won't say much about her past, you'll find out eventually, same with Lunar. For Arthiel's description, I actually used Lethe from Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance, for those who either recognized it or know the character. She just doesn't have the cat features like ears, tail, etc…obviously. R&R!!!_


	2. Chapter 1: Footsteps of Fate

_**Lannie: **__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

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_**Chapter One: Footsteps Of Fate**_

They had been traveling for a little while now, and had finally reached a town. They had headed southeast and had arrived in Bulgar – the commercial center of Sacae. Arthiel stood in town square, kneeling down to feed Lunar a piece of meet – the last from yesterday's rations.

She was deeply lost in thought about herself and Lunar, going over the nightmare or dream or whatever you wanted to call it that had been haunting her ever since she'd woken up in Lyn's care roughly a week ago.

"Arthiel! Over here!" Lyn's calls broke her from her thoughts and she looked up to see Lyn standing in the very center of town square near a small fountain with her brown horse, Zephyr, watching Lunar and Arthiel.

The orange-haired girl adjusted her cloak, which she draped over her shoulders to wrap herself in completely and she and Lunar slowly walked over, smiling.

"This is Bulgar, the biggest city in all of Sacae. We should purchase supplies for our journey," Lyn explained.

"Alright, there's not much to buy, just some food for us, Lunar and Zephyr, and we should probably get some healing materials, in case one of us gets hurt during any battle along our travels," Arthiel spoke slowly and Lyn raised an eyebrow questioningly at her last comment. Seeing this, Arthiel waved her arms defensively in front of her. "Not that I'm expecting any battles or trouble! I was just saying!"

"It's alright Arthiel, I see," Lyn laughed.

Suddenly a young man's voice interrupted their conversation. "Oh, my heart! What a dazzling vision of loveliness!" a man dressed in beige pants, brown knee-high boots and a dark green shirt all covered with green armor cried as he walked up to them, smiling charmingly. He had messy brown hair kept away from his brown eyes with a green headband.

"Hm?" Lyn turned to look at him as he eyed her, still smiling.

"Wait, O fair and beauteous one!" he declared, finally stopped to stand before Lyn.

"Oh you've got to be kidding me...," Arthiel muttered, covering her face with one hand and sighing.

"Would you not favor me with your name? Or better yet, your company?" the green-armored knight requested, smiling cheekily.

"Where are you from, sir Knight, that speaks so freely to a stranger?" Lyn demanded, not at all fazed by his charming antics.

"From the land of womanizing idiots, apparently," Arthiel whispered to Lyn, who laughed a little.

"Ha! I thought you'd never ask! I am from Lycia. I hail from the Caelin canton, home to men of passion and fire!" the man exclaimed proudly.

"Shouldn't that be '_home to oafs with loose tongues_'?" Lyn asked, smirking.

"Oooooh…you're even lovelier when you're cruel," he told her, Lyn leaned to one side to let Arthiel have her word as well.

"Ah-ah-ah Lyn! '_Home to callow oafs with loose flirtatious tongues_'!" Arthiel added, laughing.

"Well, well, well, equally fiery I see?" the young man asked, noticing Arthiel now, since Lyn had been slightly blocking the way earlier. "And just as lovely and enchanting. Will you at least give me your name fair maiden of eloquent beauty?"

"Oh please," Arthiel scoffed. "I'd rather give you a fist-full for such idiotic advances!"

"Would you not rather—" he was interrupted when Arthiel whipped her hand out from beneath her cloak and placed the index and middle finger together on his lips. Lyn watched from her place, smirking.

"Don't even finish that sentence Knight," Arthiel warned.

"Arthiel, I'm going to get some of the supplies now, like food, you will join me soon, correct?" Lyn asked, starting to lead Zephyr away.

"I will, I'm just going to get the first aid supplies and then I shall join you at the market," Arthiel replied. Lyn nodded and walked off, Zephyr with her. Arthiel looked back to the green-armored knight and removed her fingers, allowing him to speak. He opened his mouth to do so when another knight in red armor with orange hair like Arthiel's came up, leading two horses.

"Sain! Hold your tongue!" he shouted angrily, shaking his head. Arthiel quickly looked him over. Under his red armor, he had a dark orange shirt and dark brown pants that were tucked into his brown knee-high boots.

"Ah, Kent! My boon companion! Why so severe and expression?" the green-armor knight, who's name was apparently Sain, exclaimed.

"If your manners were more serious, I wouldn't have to be so severe!" Kent sighed.

"Glad to see someone around here is a gentleman," Arthiel smiled and Kent looked at her with brown eyes at he returned the smile.

"Kent! You're getting me into trouble with the beautiful maiden here!" Sain whined.

"You were already in hot water the moment you started with a bunch of stinky cheese-worthy flattery," Arthiel commented dryly.

"Your metaphors are quite amusing, and I have not heard of their like before. But you seem familiar to me. Where are you from, perhaps we've met before?" Kent asked.

"Ha-ha Kent! Attempting the stifling flattery for yourself now? I knew you'd eventually see my ways!" Sain laughed.

"What?!" Kent inquired, taken aback as Arthiel eyed him suspiciously. "No! That's not it I swear! I was just—"

"I'll be going now," Arthiel announced, cutting him off. She turned on her heel and walked off in the direction of the store that had first aid supplies. She stopped a few feet away and turned, calling Lunar, who had been standing by the knights and growling at them. Hearing his master's call, he ran off after her.

"Sain, you lout! I interested in the girl's intriguing ways of speech for they are not from around here. Nor is she, apparently, from her different appearance that somehow seems familiar to me," Kent scolded his friend, who frowned.

"So you weren't interested in her?" Sain asked. When Kent shook his head, Sain frowned again. "But Kent, she's a beautiful young woman!"

"I never said she wasn't…," Kent muttered.

"Aha! So you were attracted!" Sain exclaimed, smiling.

"No I was not! Gods Sain, why must you be so difficult?" Kent cried, sighing.

"Because you're far too serious for your own good, and need someone to balance you out," Sain told him.

"By being shamelessly flirtatious and agonizingly annoying?" Kent inquired. Sain hesitated for a moment, thinking about what Kent had said before smiling and nodding enthusiastically. "You are a very sad partner at times Sain, and somewhat disgraceful knight…"

"Disgraceful knight! That is a strong accusation Kent! It would hurt greatly if you meant it! Sain laughed.

"Sain, you do realize we till have a mission to complete, do you not? And that spending all the time you do flirting with every woman we come across only hinders the progression to its completion?" Kent asked, sighing.

"I know that. But how could any man just remain silent in the presence of such beauty? It would have been discourteous!" Sain exclaimed.

"What in the world would you know of courtesy!?" Kent scoffed.

During the time the two knights had been arguing, Lyn and Arthiel had actually managed to buy their supplies and regroup to come back to town square, intending to pass down one of the roads that let out of town. Unfortunately, Sain, Kent and their two horses found themselves in the way.

"Excuse me! You're blocking the way!" Arthiel called to them.

"If you be so kind as to move your horses…," Lyn added.

"Of course, my apologies," Kent nodded, moving their horses out of the way.

"Thank you," Lyn smiled. "You, at least, seem honorable."

"Hm? Pardon me, but…I feel we've met before," Kent told her, making Arthiel roll her eyes.

"Oh lord, now you're gonna try that on her? Lyn, we better go before this starts up agai—" Arthiel began but Sain cut her off.

"Hey! No fair Kent! I saw her first!" Sain exclaimed. "Besides, you failed using that line already!"

"Tsk! It seems there are no decent men among Lycia's Knights!" Lyn exclaimed sourly.

"Told ya," Arthiel smirked.

"Let's go Arthiel! I'm out of patience!" Lyn declared angrily. She swung herself up onto Zephyr's back, followed by Arthiel as Lunar stood there, hair on his back raised as he growled at the two knights again. Lyn directed Zephyr down the path past the knights and their horses, and Lunar trotted off after them.

"Wait, please! It's not like that…Sain, you lout!" Kent shouted angrily.

"Huh? Not like that? You were interested in information or something of the like again right? Sorry…I thought you were…," Sain began.

"I am NOT you!!!" Kent yelled. "Come, we must follow her. I suspect that she might be—"

"Be what? Wait, _**she's**_ our mission? You're joking! Wait, which one? The swordswoman…or the tactician?" Sain asked.

"The swordswoman…I thought that was obvious," Kent told his companion, shaking his head. "I don't know why I recognize the other girl…"

"Ehehehe hehe…it wasn't obvious to me…oh well. Wait up!_  
_

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_-------- __**Destiny is a confusing thing really; coincidences are never to be taken lightly. **__--------_

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A little while after leaving Bulgar, Lyn and Arthiel walked at a steady pace beside Zephyr, who at the moment was resting his back. Carrying two women – although they were petite women – was not always easy on his back, no matter how young he was. 

Lyn glanced over her shoulder and noticed three figures running towards them. "Run!!! We're pursued!"

"Who are they?" Arthiel asked as they picked up the pace a little.

"Could it be those knights from town?" Lyn asked aloud.

"Oh joy, that'll be fun, back to flirting shamelessly again," Arthiel muttered. Lyn pulled them to a stop and they half-hid behind Zephyr and Lunar as the men came closer.

"No…it's not them," Lyn shook her head, squinting her eyes. "These men are out for blood!"

"Uh-oh," Arthiel uttered before the three men reached them. The leader had scraggly grey hair and a scar across his right eye. The other two, who stood behind him, looked similar – Bandits.

"Heh heh hehhh…aren't you the pretty ones! Your name is Lyndis, is it not?" he asked Lyn. Then, seeing Arthiel as well, he smirked. "And you, it's Arthiel."

"What did you call me?" Lyn inquired.

"What? How did…but…," Arthiel stammered. _How does someone know of me when I barely want to remember myself…_

"Who are you?" Lyn demanded, making him smirk again.

"Such a waste. And absolute waste. The things I'll do for gold…ah well. One for death row, one for capture, can you guess who's who?"

"We do not have time for this," Lyn stated.

"Too bad, time to die darlin'! C'mon out boys!" He yelled across the field. The two bandits behind him back away near some trees where two other bandits came out, all wielding axes.

"Oh, no! There are more than I can handle…But I'll not give up!" Lyn declared.

"Nor will I, I'm your tactician, so I'll stick with you through good or bad, like I said!" Arthiel announced, smiling. "Besides, we've gotta knock the information out of this guy to figure out why he wants you dead, and me captured!"

Before Lyn could reply, galloping was heard and the head bandit frowned.

"Hey! There she is!" a man's familiar voice yelled out as two horses came up, their rider dismounting, one dressed in green armor, the other in red.

"Huh?" the bandit grunted.

"What? Who?" Lyn and Arthiel chorused, turning around to see Sain and Kent walking up, leaving their horses to graze.

"Whew…finally…caught up…," Sain panted. He stopped when he spotted the bandit near Arthiel and Lyn and the others around. "Old! You there! What is your business? Such numbers against two girls? Cowards, every one of you!"

"You! You're from—" Lyn began but Kent cut her off.

"We can discuss that later. It appears these ruffians mean to do you harm," Kent pointed out.

"And to take away the lovely tactician," Sain added, having overheard some of the bandit's plans, him having yelled it out and all. Arthiel merely rolled her eyes.

"If it's a fight they want, let them look to me!" Kent yelled out valiantly. The head bandit slowly backed away to reach his companions.

"Stand back! I'll take care of this!" Sain shouted.

"No! This is my fight! Stay out of my way!" Lyn snapped stubbornly.

"Guys I think we should just—" Arthiel started.

"Well, I can't just stand here and do nothing," Sain exclaimed, arguing with Lyn.

"I have a solution. You there, command us," Kent turned to look at Arthiel kindly.

"Me?" she asked, pointing a finger at herself.

"Yes, you are a tactician are you not?" he asked, smiling.

"Yes…," Arthiel nodded slowly.

"Right then, I am Kent, a knight of Lycia. My companion is Sain. We will follow your orders in battle," Kent told her before turning back to Lyn. "Is this acceptable, milady?"

"Yes, it is. Arthiel and I will lead! Let's go!" Lyn shouted as the two knights mounted their horses and Arthiel stood with Lunar and Lyn, ready to command.

_Two knights on horseback, one with sword and one with lance, plus Lyn on foot with her nimble blade…this should be fun,_ Arthiel thought to herself, smiling.

* * *

_-------- __**But when lives are on the line, who has the time to see coincidences? **__--------_

* * *

"That's the last of them! Fantastic work Arthiel!" Lyn announced happily as the head bandit dropped to the ground, dead. 

"Thank you, it was interesting working with more people," Arthiel laughed. "Once Kent gave Sain his extra sword that is…keep the weapon triangle in mind Sain."

"Good," Lyn smiled. She then turned to look at Sain and Kent, who had dismounted their horses to stand with the two girls and their companion animals. "And now for these knights of Lycia. You were going to share your story with us?"

"Yes. We have ventured from Caelin, in Lycia, in search of someone," Kent began.

"Lycia…that's the country beyond the mountains in the southwest, isn't it?" Lyn asked.

"Correct. We've come as messengers to the Lady Madelyn, who eloped with a nomad some 19 years ago," Kent told her.

"Madelyn?" Lyn inquired, looking shocked.

"Our lord the Marquess of Caelin's only daughter. He was heartbroken his own daughter would abandon him so. Eventually the Marquess simply declared that he had no daughter," Kent explained.

"That's so sad," Arthiel whispered.

"Well this recent year, we received a letter from Lady Madelyn. It said that she, her husband, and their daughter were living happily on the Sacae Plains. The Marquess was ecstatic to learn he had a granddaughter of roughly 18 years," Sain continued.

Arthiel's eyes widened as did Lyn's and the orange-haired girl looked at her friend with realization.

"I remember the smile on his face when he announced that he'd suddenly become a grandfather. The granddaughter's name was Lyndis," Sain told them. "This was also the name of the Marquess' wise, who passed away at an early age."

"Lyndis?" Lyn asked in awe. Arthiel smiled.

"That she should bear this name thawed the Marquess' heart. Now, he only wishes to meet his daughter's family at least once. This is why we're here. We didn't know that Lady Madelyn died a few days after sending her letter…," Kent explained.

"We only learned this shortly after we arrived here in Bulgar," Sain added.

"But we also learned all was not lost. Her daughter yet lives. We heard she was living alone on the plains…I…I knew it immediately. You are the Lady Lyndis," Kent told her.

"Why would you think that…?" Lyn asked a little shyly, making Arthiel smile even more.

"Your resemblance to your departed mother is remarkable," Kent commented.

"What? Did you know my mother?" Lyn asked.

"I'm sorry to say I never met her directly, but I saw her portraits in Castle Caelin," Kent replied. Lyn closed her eyes to think of memories and smiled sadly.

"To the rest of my tribe, I was always Lyn. But when I was with my parents…When it was just the three of us, I was Lyndis. It's all so strange. I was all alone in the world, before I found Arthiel, and now I have a grandfather. Lyndis…I never thought I would hear that name again," Lyn breathed.

"Ok wait, does that mean Lyn's a princess?" Arthiel asked in whispers, not wanting to disturb her friend.

"Well, she's undoubtedly an heir to the throne of Caelin, since she is the Marquess' granddaughter. So she's sort of like a princess," Kent explained, equally in whispers. Arthiel's face lit up with excitement and she smiled at him.

"That's so cool! Lady Lyndis of Caelin!" she exclaimed. At this, Lyn's eyes snapped open.

"That bandit! He called me Lyndis too!" Lyn cried.

"What? How could he have—" Ken began.

"He was a henchman of Lord Lundgren, wasn't he?" Sain asked his companion.

"Lundgren, who's that?" Arthiel asked.

"He's the marquess' younger brother. Everyone assumed the Lady Madelyn was gone forever. This made Lord Lundgren heir to the Marquess' title," Kent told her,

"But Lyn's the heir," Arthiel pointed out.

"Which is why, to be blunt milady Lyndis, your existence is an obstacle to your granduncle's ambitions," Sain explained.

"Figures…," Arthiel muttered.

"That's—but I have no interest in inheriting any title!" Lyn cried.

"Unfortunately, your granduncle is not the sort of man to believe that. I believe the attempts on your life will persist," Sain replied.

"What about Arthiel? The bandit knew her as well, said she was to be captured," Lyn added.

"That, we are not sure," Kent shook his head. He looked at Arthiel, smiling sweetly. "I'm sorry Lady Arthiel, although you seem familiar to me, we have never heard of you before, which was why I was interested in your origins when we met earlier."

"Oh...well you could've said that instead of having a misunderstanding thanks to Sain here," Arthiel replied. _Especially when you too seem familiar…although I'm not sure why…I've blocked out so many memories…_

"Hey!" Sain exclaimed defensively.

"What should we do?" Lyn asked, breaking the tension.

"Accompany us to Caelin. Continuing on this way is dangerous. There, we can work things out with your grandfather and see if we can find any information for you Arthiel, at the same time," Kent said kindly.

"I feel I have little choice. I will go with you," Lyn announced. She sighed and turned to look at Arthiel. "Arthiel, I'm sorry."

"Why Lyn?" the orange-haired girl frowned.

"This changes everything. I suddenly have a grandfather and threats on my life but I must travel to see him. And you, you have little memory of your past, yet someone out there wants you captured and you don't know why…," Lyn sighed. "What will you do Arthiel?"

"What would you have me do Lyn?" Arthiel asked, smiling,

"You want me to decide?" Lyn inquired, taken aback by the girls' apparent trust in her. "Of course, your companionship would do much to ease my journey, since we have become close friends but…It's going to be dangerous. And you need to find your answers with Lunar do you not?"

"Lyn, I run around the battlefield with no weapon and only Lunar as my protection shouting orders to warriors on the field all the time, it's my profession, of course it's dangerous," Arthiel laughed. "Besides, Kent said he would aid me in finding information once we reach Caelin, I'll hold him to those words." Kent smiled at this and nodded to her when she glanced at him.

"You'll come? Are you sure?" Lyn questioned happily. Arthiel nodded, smiling cheerfully.

"Thank you!" Lyn exclaimed. "Let me ask once again for your friendship and your aid. You, and Lunar."

"Lyn, there is no need to ask," Arthiel smiled. "You know you have it."

* * *

_--------_**_ You must always been on your guard, for fate will strike whenever it sees fit _**_-------- _

* * *

**_Lannie:_**_ There you have it, chapter two. Why is Arthiel familiar to Kent and vise versa? I will not tell you!!! You must wait until I write it... :) Anyway, R&R please, and hope you stay tuned for chapter number three: Sword of Spirits!!_


	3. Chapter 2: Sword of Spirits

_**Lannie:**__ I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

* * *

_**Chapter Two: Sword of Spirits**_

Roughly a day or two later, the company slowed its pace as per Lyn's orders and stopped just outside a small village. They dismounted their three horses and Arthiel look at Lyn questioningly.

"Arthiel, hold you travel for a moment, and allow me a short detour," Lyn requested kindly.

"Sure, I don't mind. How come?" Arthiel inquired, intrigued.

"There is a sacred sword enshrined at the altar just east of here in the village. The people of Sacae go there to pray for safety at the onset of a long journey," Lyn explained. "I felt like we should too."

"That's very nice Lyn," Arthiel smiled.

"Oh! How quaint!" Sain exclaimed in his over-exaggerating tone he reserved from flirting. All three of his companions rolled their eyes and Lunar gave an amused growl.

"The teachings of Elimine have the most followers in Elibe. It is nice to see that, here at least, the ancient customs are still observed," Kent commented.

"Elimine? Who's that?" Arthiel asked, rewarding herself with three shocked looks. Kent recovered first.

"One of the ancient heroes who saved these lands long ago, and had places named after them," Kent explained. "I am amazed you do not know of this story. My assumptions were right in thinking you really are not from around here, correct?"

"Well actually…I…uh…," Arthiel stammered, twisting her hands together._ Perfect time to get nervous Arthiel…_

Seeing this, Lyn intervened. "When I found Arthiel and Lunar on the plains, she was unconscious and I don't believe she remembers much else than her training, her name, Lunar and…well she said there was one other thing but she did not wish to speak of it…"

"Actually, I remember things," Arthiel blurted out and mentally kicked herself.

"You do? Arthiel that's wonderful!" Lyn exclaimed happily. Then, her face dropped when she saw that Arthiel's face was dark and her fists tight. "Arthiel…what is it?"

"I'm not sure why, but when I try to remember what my life was like before I awoke in Lyn's care, it seems like everything is blocked, as if I didn't want to remember and pushed it away…," Arthiel began in a sad voice. "But…four things always come back: my name, Lunar's presence, my teachings and…and the memory of those who chased me…who hurt me for doing good…"

"What?!" Lyn exclaimed. "What are you talking about Arthiel…? Who hurt you?"

"I'm not sure, I can never remember them or even what I did for them to punish me but…I remember that it was something good and they…they tried to hurt me and Lunar, so we ran," Arthiel said, her voice trembling with either sadness or anger, her companions couldn't tell. "We ran all we could and they chased us, through the forest…they stopped when Lunar and I jumped off the waterfall though…"

"You jumped off a waterfall?!" Lyn asked, in complete shock. "Arthiel that's insane!"

"I had to get away, that much I know, and I refused to let myself be taken back to whatever life I had been living, so we jumped," Arthiel explained. "I knew Lunar would protect me and somehow…he did…and we ended up floating along the water stream."

"To the point where your great companion must have pulled you from the water onto the Sacae Plains where Lyn here found you," Sain finished for her and she shrugged, nodding. Arthiel looked up finally and regarded Lyn.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you I…I just didn't know how you would react. Besides, whatever life I was living, I think has been blocked from my mind either by magic or my own will and I still can't break through…," Arthiel said sadly. Lyn smiled and hugged her.

"It's alright Arthiel, I understand," Lyn smiled.

Kent regarded the sad girl kind-heartedly and was lost in his thoughts. _I promise to find your answers for you at Castle Caelin Arthiel…I will help you remember what you cannot have been forced to forget and find those who would do that to you…_, he thought with assurance.

"Oh, what's going on there?" Sain's voice broke the entire situation as he looked towards the village and spotted a woman running towards them. Once she reached them, she looked to Lyn, who was the closest and obviously at the head of the pack.

"I beg your pardon milady. Are you headed east? To the altar?" the woman questioned,

"Yes, we are indeed," Lyn nodded.

"Then you must hurry and help the priest there. I saw a band of local ruffians head in there not long ago," the woman explained hurriedly.

"That's never good…," Arthiel whispered.

"They seemed intent on stealing the altar's sacred sword!" the woman exclaimed.

"The Mani Katti…They're going to steal it? I cannot allow this to happen!" Lyn shouted.

"You look like a virtuous group," the woman commented. "Please, help him!"

"Lyndis, what are you planning?" Sain asked with a mischievous smile.

"I intend to save the priest and chase away these bandits, are you all with me?" Lyn asked, smiling at her friends.

"Of course," Kent nodded.

"Ready when you are milady," Sain smirked. The three turned to look at Arthiel, who nodded timidly. Lunar nuzzled her hand reassuringly, his spiky fur brushing past her. The four readied the horses and took off towards the altar, prepared for the battle ahead.

_-------- __**Fate works in many ways unseen. Never take anything for granted. **__--------_

Once they reached the high outer walls of the temple where the altar was located, a disgruntled yell came from above them as a bandit jumped from his watchful perch of the wall.

He was high enough that Sain, who was closest, merely had to back up his horse slightly to be out of the way. The bandit crashed to the ground and grunted as he pushed himself up, wiping his bleeding lip.

Without words, he merely uttered a battle cry and lunged at the green knight, who parried with his sword. The two exchanged short blows before Kent came at the bandit from behind, per Arthiel's orders and slashed him across the back. The bandit gurgled on the blood that had rushed to meet open mouth and fell to the ground with a _thud_.

Three more bandits rushed out of the temple entrance, stood their ground and looked around wildly for the source of the noise. The four companions backed up their horses to be out of sight around the corner.

Kent noticed a large crack in the wall and nudged Arthiel, who sat on Zephyr with Lyn. The orange-haired girl noticed where he pointed to and nodded, smiling.

"Alright," Arthiel began in a low voice, working out the plan in her head. "Sain and Kent, I want you to charge the front entrance with the three bandits as a distraction, is that alright?"

The two knights nodded and before she continued, Lunar growled, swishing his tail excitedly. "What is it Lunar?" Arthiel asked.

"I believe he wants to be part of this battle for once Arthiel," Lyn pointed out.

"Of course, protecting me isn't always exciting now is it?" Arthiel laughed. "Ok, Sain, Kent, Lunar will accompany you, acceptable?"

The two knights nodded again and Lunar jumped playfully. "And what of me Arthiel?" Lyn asked.

Arthiel pointed to the large crack in the wall. "When we hear the fighting begin at the entrance, we'll break through here to get inside."

"So we shall take our time then?" Kent asked her.

"If you can," Arthiel replied. They smiled and nodded to the knights, who took off towards the entrance with Lunar running at their side. The two girls heard the battle cries of the bandits and Lunar's howl as their distraction began.

Lyn and Arthiel dismounted Zephyr, who trotted a few feet away to graze happily. The two girls nodded to one another before beginning to chip away at the large crack; Lyn with her sword and Arthiel with a rock she picked up.

Minutes later, the crack was large enough and both girls clambered through. As soon as they did, they were met by a threatening blade that hung in the air in front of their faces. Its owner grinned, showing yellow teeth.

"Who do you think you are? You attempt to sneak up on me while the others distract my bandits. How very stupid of you," the man sneered. "What made you think you had a chance against Glass, the Great Bandit of Sacae?"

"You give yourself great credit bandit," Lyn told him, fingering the hilt of her sheathed sword.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Glass warned, approaching the blade to Arthiel's throat.

_Why oh why did I send Lunar with Sain and Kent…the one time I need him…he's not here,_ Arthiel scolded herself mentally. _Stupid, stupid, stupid!! Ok…breathe Arthiel…breathe…don't freak out._

"What is it that you want bandit?" Lyn asked cautiously, being careful he wouldn't make a move to injure the girl he held captive.

"I already have what I came for, the scared blade of this altar…but the damn thing won't release itself for me!" Glass shouted. "It remains sheathed in its scabbard. The idiot priest says it's spirits have judged me indecent of the blade!"

"Then you have nothing more for you here," Lyn told him. From over the bandit's shoulder, Lyn spied the two knights and the wolf slowly and cautiously walking towards them.

"I think I've found something else I want," Glass smirked, tightening his grip of Arthiel's arm and bringing her closer. She squirmed and tried to get away but he brought his blade closer, which stopped her.

Lyn noticed as Kent edged towards her, bringing his and Sain's horses and Lunar at his side. Glass moved so that both she and Kent were in his sights and laughed. He stopped when he noticed one person was missing.

"Where's that other whelp? The green-armored one?" Glass demanded angrily.

Kent's face dropped and he looked towards the horses and the shadowed body draped over one of them, covered by a cloak as a green armored hand hung out. Arthiel and Lyn gasped and Glass merely laughed again.

"Well, well, well that's too bad," Glass smirked. "Not like he'll be missed, that's just one less annoyance in my way."

"That's rude," Arthiel commented, looking upwards at him. That was when she spotted a figure moving among the shadows of the pillars in behind the bandit. "How would you feel if I started being rude to you…like laughing at whatever kind of name '_Glass_' is!"

Glass peered down at her with a shocked and confused look. "What kind of a hostage are you? Don't you know they usually just cower in fear and whimper as the bad guy makes his demands? In this case, after seeing your knight dead you should be crying, not snapping back!" he exclaimed in bewilderment. "Doesn't the death of your comrade do anything to--"

He stopped mid-speech as a blade plunged through his right side and Arthiel squealed frightfully as the sword nearly missed her. Glass dropped his blade and clutched his shoulder, incidentally letting go of Arthiel. The orange-haired girl stumbled forward and Kent caught her.

Sain pulled his blade free and Glass dropped to the ground, panting. "You…You…Urr…Urgh…," he managed to gasp out with his last breaths.

"You alright?" Kent looked down at Arthiel, who, though a few tears were in her eyes, nodded slowly. She then resumed burying her face in his arm, on a spot that was without armor, and clutching it tightly.

"Is she…ok?" Lyn asked worriedly and Kent nodded.

"Just a little shaken up is all, milady," Kent told her. Sain walked over after wiping his sword free of the blood and sheathing it.

"Well that's unfair, I save the girl and yet she clings to Kent," Sain pouted.

"Sain! She just had her life threatened!" Lyn exclaimed sternly, elbowing him.

"Yeah…but I saved it…," Sain muttered, rubbing his side where Lyn had hit him.

Arthiel heard this and raised her head from Kent's arm, smiling. She wiped the tears from her eyes, hugged Kent and walked over to Sain. She leaned up and gave him a kiss on the cheek. Sain face lit up and Kent's eyes rolled at his fellow knight's behavior.

"Thank…um…thank you…," she stammered shyly. She looked at all of them, wiping another tear. "Thank you all…it was my foolishness that got me into trouble and you all saved me…thank you."

As soon as silence fell between them, Lunar jumped at Arthiel, licking her face. "Lunar…ah! Alright Lunar…that's alright…I'm ok!"

The black wolf back down and shook his fur and stood by her side protectively. Arthiel smiled down at him and patted his head. He suddenly started growling, and the companions turned to see an old priest walking out of a back room that had been barred and shut previously.

He slowly walked over to them and approached Lyn after spotting her. "Ah, your clothing…Are you of the Lorca Tribe?" he asked.

"I'm Lyn, the chieftain's daughter," Lyn replied. "Are you hurt sir?"

"Thanks to you, I am unscathed," the priest smiled thankfully.

"Really it was all Arthiel's doing, she tells us what to do and where to do," Sain smiled, wrapping an arm around the orange-haired girl's waist. This made her blush furiously and mutter to herself.

"You're milking it Sain," Arthiel told him. Then, she continued in a whisper. "I ended up nearly getting myself killed…it was a stupid move…I'm not that great you know…"

"Sain…," Kent sighed, covering his face with one hand and shaking his head.

"Well then tactician, you have my gratitude," the priest smiled, amused my the interaction between the companions.

"You…You're welcome…," Arthiel stammered shyly. She then noticed Sain still had his arm wrapped around her and she swatted it away, glaring at him as he grinned sheepishly.

"The sword? Is it safe?" Lyn asked the priest, suddenly remembering their purpose.

"Yes, I have sealed the sword away safely. Until I remove my spell, the sword cannot be drawn. Now, as a token of my gratitude, I shall allow you to lay your hands upon the Mani Katti," the priest declared, going over to fetch the sheathed sword. He came back and laid it flat across his open palms. "Touch the blade's pattern, and pray for a safe journey."

"Oh, thank you so much!" Lyn exclaimed happily. The priest unlocked the sword from its spell and Lyn laid her hands upon the sheathed weapon. Suddenly, it began emitting a bright white light.

"Hm?" the priest frowned.

"What? Did--" Lyn began but was interrupted when the blade's light glowed brighter and pulsed. The three companions who watched had to squint their eyes slightly and Lunar hid behind Arthiel's cloak.

"The sword…it's…glowing," Lyn stated.

"Which means?" Arthiel asked aloud.

"Ah. Hm…it's the power of the spirits," the priest explained. "Lyn, they have looked into your soul, and they call out to you."

"Gee, that was helpful…," Sain whispered to Arthiel, who stood beside him.

"Shh!!!" she scolded.

"What does…what does that mean?" Lyn asked, still staring in awe at the bright blade.

"You are it's rightful owner. You are to wield the Mani Katti," the priest replied simply.

"No…I can't…I couldn't," Lyn stammered, shaking her head.

"It is the sword's wish. If you require proof, draw it from it's sheath," the priest told her.

"Um…," Lyn said timidly. She took a deep breath and held the sheath in one hand and the hilt of the sword in the other. Expecting struggle, she closed her eyes, tightening her grip on the hilt. She pulled on it and the blade slid out in one swift motion.

"It came out…effortlessly," Lyn commented, staring at the blade in her hands with amazement.

"Well he did tell you it was yours…," Sain commented, earning him a pair of glares from Kent and Arthiel.

"Not now Sain!" they snapped.

"I never dared hope that I might meet the wielder of the Mani Katti in my life. I am indeed fortunate to see your sword reach your hands Lyn," the priest smiled.

"See, he said it was hers," Sain whispered proudly to his fellow knight and the tactician.

"Shh!!!" they scolded angrily, motioning for him to politely and quietly observe the scene before him.

"My sword?" Lyn asked. It was really more a rhetorical question, since she knew the priest had already told her twice it was hers.

"It is time for you to go Lyn. You face a great many ordeals. Grip this sword, and meet your destiny head-on," the priest told her.

"Yes…Yes, sir!" Lyn nodded firmly, sheathing the Mani Katti.

_-------- __**Surprises lay around every corner, and you must be careful or you'll get hurt. **__--------_

Hours later, the four companions had stopped for the night in a nice patch of the field. They were all a little tired from the fight earlier as well as the ride here but at least they were no longer injured. The priest had offered to heal them up before they left and they had gladly accepted, since none of them were very good at first aid.

Lyn sat on a stump, the Mani Katti unsheathed and sitting across her knees. From the look on her face, the others guessed something as amiss. Sain, Kent, Arthiel and Lunar walked over to her to see what troubled her.

"So this is the Mani Katti…a blade with no equal," Kent commented as they sat down around the stump. Lyn had had her time admiring and now it seemed it was their turn.

"Now you're a wondrously beautiful princess to the throne of Caelin **and** you have an ancient sword with which to battle valiantly with that belongs solely to you!" Sain exclaimed happily and the two companions seated on the ground with him roller their eyes. Lunar merely snorted into the grass, making a few blades fall over due to his hot breath,

"Sain please, this is a serious matter! And besides, she's not a princess, merely an heir," both Arthiel and Kent said simultaneously. Their eyes widened in response to this and they regarded each other with shocked glances. Sain and Lyn blinked repeatedly at them and Lunar…sneezed.

"Alright, alright. Geez, what's with the stereo scolding?" Sain asked, laughing. "I swear, you're related or something."

Both and Arthiel and Kent frowned at his words, looking at one another before shrugging and returning their attention to Lyn. "So, how does it feel Lyn?" Arthiel asked, diverting from the odd subject.

"This is all so unbelievable," Lyn replied. "Perhaps the most famous sword in all of Sacae…in my hands."

"It's not all so strange," Kent spoke up. "In fact, many legends tell similar tales…special blades all over the land call out their proper owners. And yet, when I saw you draw that blade, Lyndis…I felt something extraordinary."

Sain smirked and opened his mouth to say something idiotic. Arthiel, who sat beside him noticed this, and elbowed him in the side, knocking the wind out of him. This, incidentally, preventing him from saying something stupid yet again.

"That sword was waiting for you," Kent went on, ignoring the other two. "You were meant to draw it."

"Stop it!" Lyn shouted. "I…I'm nothing special!"

"But Lyn you—" Arthiel began.

"Think of it this way," Sain interjected. "Some weapons feel more comfortable in your hand, right? Well, the Mani Katti itself feels very comfortable with you. Does this make it any easier for you to accept?"

"Perhaps…," Lyn sighed. "But am I really the only one to wield it?"

"Let's see," Arthiel offered, outstretching her hand. Lyn passed her the sword, which immediately felt abnormally heavy, compared to other swords she'd held. Arthiel nearly dropped it before quickly returning it to its owner as Sain laughed and Kent grinned.

Sain tried next, and somehow managed to but himself as he attempted to wield the blade, making it his turned to be laughed at. Arthiel then got out some fabric to wrap his hand with as Kent tried last, but was not able to draw the blade. It had locked itself in it's sheath when he tried to draw it. He then returned it to Lyn.

"Brilliant idea Arthiel," Sain muttered as she finished wrapping his hand. He then turned back to Lyn as Arthiel stuck her tongue out at him. "It doesn't appear that any of us can use it."

"It does feel right in my hand," Lyn told them. "A blade that only I can wield. That seems reasonable enough now. I can understand that. Thank you."

"And for once Sain shows a serious side, that somehow makes things right for once," Arthiel laughed, making Sain stick his tongue out at her this time.

"And oh how rare those moments are," Kent laughed with her,

"You're doing it again," Sain narrowed his eyes at them suspiciously. Kent and Arthiel exchanged glances once more before yet again rolling their eyes at the green knight.

"We are **not** related, we just think similarly at times," Arthiel sighed. "Don't freak out Sain."

"But you guys say you seem familiar to one another…and you have the same off orange hair color…," Sain whined in his idea's defense. "What if you guys are like long lost family?"

"Sain please, go back to being serious just this once will you?" Kent shook his head.

"So Lyn, what's it like?" Arthiel inquired, returning to their previous subject.

"Look at it Arthiel," Lyn smiled with pride. "This is the Mani Katti. This is…my sword."

"It's magnificent, a true blessing Lyn." Arthiel told her friend.

"Yes, and I must care for it well," Lyn nodded, still smiling.

_-------- __**You will go through life, and make your choices, but be careful you don't play into the hand of others. **__--------_

"What? Madelyn's daughter is still alive!?" an old man yelled angrily and the soldier before him cringed.

"Uh…yes milord. I've heard the girl is traveling with Ken, Sain and a cunning tactician who has a wolf," the soldier nodded. "What are you orders? If we let them be…"

"Bah! I've heard that northern Bern is full of bandits. She's just a girl. She'll not survive her journey here, no matter how many knights of Caelin she has or how smart the wolf-guarded tactician is!" the man snapped, slamming his fist into the arm of his chair. He took a deep breath, regaining his composure before continuing. "I'm more concerned with my older brother. His life must be ended quickly. The poison…there must be no blunders."

"Yes milord," the soldier said obediently. He suspects nothing and continues do drink it. The Marquess' death, due no doubt to '_sudden illness_' is not far off."

"Heh heh heh!" the man cackled with laughter. "Soon…Soon Caelin will be mine!"

_-------- __**No matter the trouble that lies ahead, if you want something done, you'll have to face it eventually. **__--------_

**Lannie:** Alright, this was officially my most hated level of the game, and I didn't even like writing about it, except for the random scenes I added. The whole sword just never was that captivating for me in the game.

Anyway! I stopped writing half-way to read the reviews I got and was actually very happy. Thank you all for the constructive comments and criticism where it was applied, it helped with some ideas.

That said, I'd also like to clear two things up. One – for those who believe Arthiel's case to be amnesia, don't worry it's not. I hope the little scene in this chapter about that cleared it up, something has blocked her memory magically, or of her own free will…she **does not** have amnesia. 2 – This isn't really clearing anything up; it's actually just musing about an idea. I realize there have been hinting to an Arthiel x Kent fic…but careful what you perceive, things aren't always what they seem.

Ok, so there ya go. Thank you for your reviews!! R&R!!!!!


	4. Chapter 3: A Band of Mercenaries

_**Lannie:**__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

* * *

_**Chapter Three: A Band of Mercenaries**_

On the tenth day since departing the plains, Lyn's company arrived at what they expected to be a group of small villages. However, they found the first few completely ravaged, the buildings destroyed and crumbling.

"This place…," Lyn stared in awe as they walked carefully through the third village like this. Their horses were obviously uneasy, and the furry mane that traveled along Lunar's neck and some of his spine was constantly raised.

"It's a disaster," Arthiel finished. "What has happened?"

"The entire area is in ruins," Sain commented. "Why doesn't their Marquess do anything to help?"

"Taliver Mountain is home to a gang of vicious, ruthless bandits. No Marquess holds power here," Lyn shook her head.

"Taliver Bandits…," Arthiel looked up at Lyn, who sat on Zephyr. For once she had decided to walk a while with Lunar while they rode. "Lyn weren't they…?"

"Yes Arthiel, the ones that attacked my village. It was near here, on the other side of the mountain. My people were…," Lyn paused and sighed as memories flooded back to her. "The Taliver Bandits came at night. It took only one night. The survivors numbered less than ten, including me."

"That's horrible," Kent breathed.

"Indeed," Lyn nodded. "They're soulless beasts. I will never forgive them. Never."

"As I will never forgive those who destroyed our lives Lunar…," Arthiel whispered to the black wolf, stroking his dark bluish mane thoughtfully.

"Hm?" Kent had been riding on his horse, Blaze, nearby and had heard her whispering. It had been barely audible but the keen wolf's ears had picked it up as she had intended – Kent however was not able to make it out, thus felt the need to ask.

"Oh! Nothing!" Arthiel exclaimed, timid all of a sudden. "I was just saying that if I were her, I wouldn't forgive those who ruined my life either…"

Kent seemed to believe this and nodded, smiling. Arthiel returned the smile as Sain's voice broke the silence.

"Lyndis…," he began, seeing the look on her face after reminiscing.

"I am not running away," she said with assurance, closing her eyes. "I will be back…someday. I'll be stronger…I will break their swords beneath me like twigs beneath a stallion's hooves. I will avenge my people. I'll do everything in my power."

"And I will help you, as I promised," Arthiel smiled.

"But what about your past? What about your answers?" Lyn asked.

"Avenging what you care about and remember is more important that what I do want to, or cannot remember. So I will help you return and take down those who ruined your tribe and your family," Arthiel replied, shrugging slightly.

"When the time comes, bring me with you. For both your journey," Sain smirked.

"Sain," both girls smiled, nodding.

"Don't forget me either. I have promised to help you already Arthiel, and I will hold to my words. As for you Lyn, when the time comes for you to avenge your parents, I will accompany you as well," Kent stated, earning him another pair of smiles and nods.

Suddenly, the moment was broken when they heard shouting coming from the next village over. Two figures burst through the village gates, running towards them as a white horse followed, wings flapping in the wind_  
_

* * *

_-------- __**An old friend shall be gained anew as a team shall always grow. **__--------  
_

* * *

_Approximately ten minutes earlier in the village over…_

"Wait right there little lady!" a burly man shouted, grabbing the arm of a girl with lilac-colored hair that tumbled to her shoulders in waves. "What are you going to do to apologize? Huh?"

"Uh, I…that is…I," the girl stammered, looking timidly at him through her big blue eyes.

"Hey, she's quite a catch eh buddy?" the second man sneered, his greasy brown hair falling into his eyes. "I bet the boss'd give us a pretty penny for her."

"Yeah," the first bandit nodded. "She roughed me up a bit, so I figure fair's fair. It's no more'n she deserves."

"I…I…," the girl was still stammering, unable to form a coherent sentence.

"What are we gonna do with her flying mule?" the skinner of the two asked, indicating to the winged white horse that stood behind the girl, whinnying occasionally. This got the young woman's attention.

"Don't you dare touch her!" she shouted. The two men stated at her for a moment, due to her sudden outburst and capability at saying a full sentence – let alone a demand – without stuttering.

"What?" the greasy-haired man laughed. "You just watch your mouth girlie!"

"Do what you will with me, just…let her go," she pleaded. "Please, I beg of you."

"Hahaha! Silly twit!" the burlier of the two, who was apparently the leader, rumbled with laughter insultingly. "Pegasi can only be found in Ilia. They're rare beasts, worth more than you by far! We can sell it for a mountain of gold. Let it go? HA!"

"No, you can't…," the girl whimpered.

"C'mon! Let's move!" he yelled tightening his grip on her arm and dragging her forward as they walked. His companion took care of pulling the Pegasus by the reins.

They only got a few feet before an arrow whizzed through the air and struck the bandit holding the girl. He yelped, letting go of her to clutch his bleeding shoulder, where a blue-feathered arrow was sticking out.

The girl's Pegasus whinnied loudly, and seeing an opportunity, reared on her hind legs, kicking the man that held her rein's in the head. He fell to the ground, dead.

"What in the hell?" the other bandit yelled hoarsely. He got to his feet after snapping the arrow in half and glared at the two people before him.

The girl whom he'd held captive mere moments ago stood cowering slightly behind her Pegasus. Beside her was a young man with brown hair and matching brown eyes who held a bow.

"These people have been good to me in the time I've stayed here, and I refuse to let you and your band hurt them," the man stated valiantly. "Nor will I let you harm or kidnap an innocent young lady!"

"Oh really?" the bandit cackled as he looked around, watching as other bandits moved silently to surround them. "And what are you gonna do against all of us, being just one little lone archer and a terrified girlie with a Pegasi?"

The brunette glanced around and noticed just how many men the bandit had at his command. _One…two…three…five…seven! Oh-uh, here I thought there were just the two and her…not good._

He heard the girl whimper behind him and he glanced at her, causing her to shrink away slightly. He looked back at the bandit but not before whispering something to her, to which she replied by grabbing her Pegasi's reins and turning slightly away.

"Well, love to try and test this, but today's not my day to die and nor is it hers!" the young man laughed. "See ya!"

He turned toe and grabbed the other side of the creature's reins, taking off in the direction of the village exit. The girl followed suit, catching up and running at a steady pace with him.

"AFTER THEM!" the head bandit shouted angrily_  
_

* * *

_-------- __**Hence why a tactician shall learn the weapons triangle and magic circles. For you never know what will come up. **__--------  
_

* * *

_And now back to present time…_

"What's this? Be on your guard Lyndis, there seems to be some sort of commotion over there," Kent warned as they saw the two people and the winged horse running towards them. Shouting persisted in the village behind them.

"That's…that's a Pegasus," Lyn's eyes widened. "Could it be?"

"Do you know her?" Arthiel asked, guessing by Lyn's reaction what the answer might be. The green-haired plainswoman did not answer however, but merely took off towards the running figures. Arthiel, Kent and Sain exchanged glances and shrugged before following.

"Florina? Is that you Florina?" Lyn asked loudly as she stopped a few feet away from the two people and the Pegasus.

The lilac-haired girl looked up and joy washed over her face as she sprung forward, greeting the swordswoman with a hug.

"Ah! Lyn!" she exclaimed happily just as Lyn's companions caught up. Arthiel quickly examined the two strangers.

The girl's lilac hair certainly did contrast her bright blue eyes, which gave her quite an innocent look. She wore a white t-shirt styled dress of mid-thigh length, faded grey-blue open-fingered gloves beginning right where her sleeves ended. She wore a small blue breast-plate and shoulder plates of the same color, as well as matching blue boots of knee-high length and a small brown pouch attached around her waist.

The young man however had a mess of spiky brown hair with matching brown eyes. He sported a blue t-shirt with dark orange trim and an olive green shoulder-strap of armor. He had on white pants tucked into his knee-high brown boots and had his quiver of arrows snugly fitting at the back of the belt around his waist. His left hand was gloved in a blue open-fingered piece, the left, in a brown one.

"Florina!" Lyn laughed as the girl finally let her go. "What are you doing in such a place as this?"

"Lyn…I…I…," the girl stammered, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Come now, no crying!" Lyn smiled meekly.

"You are acquaintances?" Kent asked. Seeing him, Florina backed away a little.

"She's my friend," Lyn nodded. "This is Florina, a Pegasus Knight in training from Ilia. She's a little…uncomfortable around men."

Sain frowned and pointed to the archer who stood a few feet away from Florina and her Pegasus, as if asking why she had arrived with him if she was afraid of men. Lyn looked puzzled.

"I…I come from the village…sort of. They were taking me in," he began a little nervously. "She was having a little trouble with some bandits, so I decided to help her out…no idea she was uncomfortable around men."

Lyn nodded and looked at Florina, who was casting shy glances in the archer's direction. "Tell me Florina, what happened here?" Lyn inquired.

"Well um, when I heard that you had left…I decided to follow you," Florina explained. "Then I saw this village…I flew down to ask if they had any news of you. I didn't see these two men that were standing around…and…well…"

"Did your Pegasus land on them?" Lyn sighed.

"Well, I…a little," Florina replied timidly.

The bandits, who were only a few feet away now after leaving the village, heard this. "Aha! You heard her! She admits her fault! She stepped on me and now she's got to pay!" the head bandit exclaimed angrily, still holding the spot where a half-broken arrow was lodged.

"Did you apologize Florina?" Lyn asked simply, reminding Arthiel slightly of a mother talking out a fight between two kids.

"Yes. I told them many times over," Florina nodded, tears welling up in her eyes again. "They just wouldn't listen…"

"Don't cry," Lyn comforted. "It's all right.

"Listen, the girl's obviously sorry. Can't you just let this pass?" the archer asked simply. "You don't appear to be injured or anything…well except for the arrow thing."

"No chance," the bandit growled. "The girl goes with us – by force if need be! And don't think you're getting out of this lightly for injuring me pal…"

The bandits and mercenaries behind him moved out to surround the little group slightly. "That's it boys, time to play! The men are fair game, but don't put a scratch on the girls!"

Since they were still near the half-destroyed villages, they still had a few walls and houses on the field with them and Lyn noticed these. She turned to look at Arthiel.

"The layout around here might make it easier or harder to fight, I'm not sure, its wide open for the most part except for a few trees on the side lines. It would be smart to take that into note Arthiel, " Lyn pointed out. Florina noticed Lyn talking with the tactician and was going to ask who that was, but decided to wait until later. Besides…the short messy hair, the large cloak…Florina felt uneasy again.

"Yes, thank you Lyn," Arthiel smiled nodding.

"Lyn…I…," Florina began, eyeing the bandits around them worriedly.

"You're a Pegasus Knight, aren't you? You can fight, can't you?" Lyn asked the timid girl.

"Yes!" Florina nodded vigorously, eager to show that she could.

"Good, then listen to what the tactician says, and you'll be fine," Lyn smiled.

"Ahem, excuse me," the archer made his attendance known, being careful not to make Florina uncomfortable in any way with his presence.

"Oh right! The archer who saved Florina!" Lyn exclaimed sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I'd forgotten a little about you being here."

"That's ok, the name's Will," he smiled. "I'm a traveler of sorts and as I've said before, the villagers 'round here were kind to me. So I'd like to help you."

"Arthiel?" Lyn looked at the orange-haired girl questioningly.

"A new friend is always welcome," Arthiel nodded merrily. "Especially when he carries a long-distance weapon!"

"How does that go again?" Sain asked himself. "Ah yes! _The more, the merrier_!"

"Alright, Sain, Kent, I want you to attack the mercenaries and bandits there while Will provides you with suppressive fire," Arthiel stated and the three men nodded. "Florina, can I get you to fly out and attack the leader? He's already injured thanks to Will here, so he won't be much trouble but Lyn will go with you as well."

"But there are…there are two Archers…near him," Florina stammered nervously.

Arthiel squinted her eyes against the sunlight and spotted the two figured hidden by the tree line. "And so there are!" Arthiel exclaimed brightly. "You were right about the tree line Lyn!"

"W-What am I…going to do?" Florina asked about the archers again. Arthiel looked back at her.

"Don't worry, they'll be outta the way in just a moment or two," the tactician smiled. She looked down at Lunar, who understood and growled a response before darting off into the shadows of the tree line. Sain and Kent took this as their cue and charged off towards their five targets while Will loaded arrow after arrow, firing at different opponents, whom would duck from an arrow only to be slashed by a sword or impaled by a lance.

Lunar returned moments later and sat down to lick his paws clean. Florina's eyes widened as she and Lyn mounted her Pegasus. "You have a _wolf_?!" she exclaimed in bewilderment.

"I'll explained later," Lyn told her before the white creature took off. Migal – the head bandit – sound found himself cursing under his breath and attempting to dodge not only a javelin but also a thin quick sword. A tactic that soon failed as did that of his fellow bandits on the field_  
_

* * *

_-------- __**Teamwork is essential to any team, so remember that as their tactician. **__--------_

* * *

"That's finally taken care of," Lyn sighed as leaned against Zephyr, cleaning her blade. The others were grouped around, Sain and Kent having dismounted to lean by their horses as well. Florina sat in the grass at her Pegasus' hooves. Will sat on a slightly large rock he'd found a few feet away and Arthiel say on the grass as well, Lunar curled at her side.

"Now for another matter," Lyn smiled, looking at Florina. "Florina, why did you follow me? It's so dangerous."

"Do you remember the Pegasus Knights of Ilia?" the timid girl asked.

"Yes, you join a band of freelance solders to further your training," Lyn nodded. "Is that what brought you here Florina?"

"Uh-huh. I wanted to talk to you before I set out," Florina explained. "But when I went to Sacae, I heard that you had left with some strangers and…"

"You were worried for me? Thank you, but I'm more worried about you," Lyn told her,

"Me?" Florina squeaked.

"Yes, most mercenaries are men, correct?" Lyn inquired and Florina nodded.

"Bands of men," Will reminded her.

"Oh, yes, thank you," Lyn smiled. "Bands of men, I can't imagine you being at all comfortable in a group such as that."

"I know, I know. It's just…I've always dreamt of being a Pegasus Knight. I imaged I would just…work it out. Somehow," Florina sighed. Her eyes began to tear up again and the four companions that did now know her wondered if this was frequent behavior the girl had. "After today, I'm not so sure. Maybe I should just…go home…"

"Florina, please don't cry," Lyn smiled weakly, walking over to the girl.

"Yes!" Sain chipped in cheerily. "There's no reason to give up your dream!"

"Hm?" Lyn looked up at him questioningly.

"Lovely Florina!" Sain began, causing Kent and Arthiel to sigh and shaker their heads. "I have the most brilliant idea!"

"Sain!" Kent scolded angrily, trying to wave his fellow knight back as he slowly approached the two girls, still talking.

"You should come with us! With the addition of Will here," Sain went on, motioning to the Archer, "we're a fine group of soldiers, and freelance to boot!"

"Wait," Will looked up from the arrow-head he's been readjusting to glance at Sain with a puzzled look. "Did you just include me?'

"Of course! We were destined to meet here! It's fate!" Sain exclaimed.

Kent and Arthiel, who seemed to be absent from this conversation being a few feet away with the horses, burst out laughing.

"Is it just me…or did that sound horribly…like Sain was flirting?" Arthiel asked between giggles.

"I was not!" Sain protested loudly.

"Sorry Sain but she has a point, it sounds like the horribly cheesy lines you usually start conversations with when you find a beautiful lady!" Kent exclaimed, doubling over in laughter again. Lyn, Will and even Florina laughed a little.

"Fine, delusional the both of you!" Sain shouted, turning back to Florina and Lyn. "Come now, Lyndis' band of mercenaries is a good training group as you will find anywhere!"

"With personalities that always clash, a great tactician, and laughter that always follows us!" Kent added as he and Arthiel were still laughing about Sain. Normally he would've scolded Sain right now for implying all these mercenary-group catches to the young Pegasus Rider, but he was too busy being amused by his companion.

"Lyndis?" Florina asked, and Lyn turned to look at her. "Um, Lyn? Mercenaries?"

"I can give you the details later," Lyn sighed. "This is all a bit rushed. However, and I cannot believe I'm saying this, but Sain is right."

"Hey!" Sain shouted indignantly.

"Will you come with us Florina?" Lyn asked, ignoring him.

"Travel with you Lyn? Truly? I would be so…so happy!" Florina squealed happily. Sain smiled and leaned down to be eye-level with her.

"Fantastic! Beauteous Florina! I am a knight of Caelin. My name is Sain…," the green knight began his speech but was interrupted when Florina crawled away slightly.

"Eeek! Stay back! Don't get so close!" the lilac-haired girl squeaked.

"Ah! Beautiful…and yet so modest," Sain sighed. "Ow!"

Arthiel had broken him from his little dream world by whacking him on the back of the head. "Lyn already said Florina's uncomfortable around men you lout, leave her alone!"

"Now you're using his insult?!" Sain whined, referring to Kent always calling him '_lout_'. "Stop the related-ness now _please_!"

"Those two are related?" Florina asked.

"How?" Will added.

"No, no, no we're not related in any way!" Arthiel laughed before whacking Sain again. "He just thinks we are and persists upon whining about it every chance he gets."

"On another matter, I beg your forgiveness Lady Lyndis," Kent sighed. "Sain calling us mercenaries like that…"

"No, I approve," Lyn replied. "We can't leave Florina on her own. So it's a great idea for her to travel with us."

"So…is it really alright if I come too?" Will asked.

"Oh yes, of course! If you are prepared Will!" Lyn exclaimed.

"Actually, I'm very grateful. Truth be told, all of my money was stolen, and I'm…at a bit of a crossroads," Will said hesitantly.

"Besides, he saved me from the bandits," Florina spoke without meaning to and blushed when everyone looked at her, ducking behind Lyn. She poked her head out slightly to look at Will. "Um…I mean…thank you…"

"You're welcome," Will smiled sweetly. He looked at the others proudly. "I'd be honored to count myself one of Lyndis' Legion!"

"_Lyndis' Legion_?" Lyn frowned. She looked over at Arthiel and laughed. "This is getting stranger every day Arthiel!"

Arthiel laughed as well and it was then that she noticed the shy look Florina gave her. She had noticed that ever since her addition to the group earlier, she'd been equally wary of her as much as the men.

That's when it hit her – _Florina must be unsure whether I'm a guy or a girl. I mean sure, I've got a fairly feminine voice but I haven't spoken much, my hair is quite short and guy-like because of its messy style. And there's my cloak as well…I'm completely covered by it…_., Arthiel thought to herself. _Wait! I've got it!_

She looked down and acted like she'd spotted a mark or something on the front of her cloak. She got up and walked over to her bag. "It certainly does get weirder Lyn but…," she paused as she took off her cloak and laid it out on the grass, taking her small flask of water to it. This allowed Florina to see the curves that her large cloak usually concealed and confirming that she was indeed a girl.

"New additions to the team are always welcome, you know that. It just means I get to practice my tactician training more!" Arthiel declared happily.

She finished wiping off the non-existent stain and put her flask back in her bag before grabbing her cloak and returning to her, waving her hand to make the water dry before putting it back on.

Arthiel glanced at Florina, who smiled much less timidly than before and nodded in her direction, knowing the tactician had done this on purpose as she talked to set the girl at ease rather than address the matter and have her be embarrassed.

Since the others had not picked up on this, it would be their secret. And amusing secret that later, when the two would undoubtedly become closer, they would look back on and laugh about together.

For now however, they had to explain their situation to the new additions to _Lyndis' Legion_, as Will had called it.

* * *

_-------- __**Trust must not only be formed within the ranks, but also between yourself and your warriors. **__--------_

* * *

**Lannie:** So there ya have it! Chapter 3! Yes, Sandy, I guess I do update fast. And that's primarily because it's summer and I have nothing do to. But not always. For instance, it might be a few more days than usual before I post the next chapter or two for you guys, 'cuz I have a goodbye party to plan for a friend, but stay tuned for it!! Thanks for reviews everyone, keep em coming!! R&R!!

OH BY THE WAY! I know how the title seems familiar to Lady DragonStarr's fic, and it bothers me as well, probably because I'd red it recently before finding the beginning to this tucked away in a folder somewhere and needed to name it quickly when posting. I wanna change it now though. My only problem – I have no idea what to name it. I know I want it to have something with the actual video game's title "Blazing Swords" I just don't know what to add. Suggestions are completely welcome!!


	5. Chapter 4: Occupations and Shadowy Past

_**Lannie:**__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

* * *

_**Chapter Four: Occupations and Shadows of the Past**_

Sain and Will slowed Caspian, Sain's horse, to a stop as they came up to a broken down and crumbling fortress. Both men dismounted the horse and stood there, examining the outside walls and the little they could see of the main entrance inside.

"Ah, this should suffice! Tonight's bed!" Will announced as he leaned against Caspian with Sain.

"Are you sure? This mildewy old fortress? Is this the best we can do?" Sain asked, pouting. "Come now Will! Surely you jest!"

"The bandits keep everything in turmoil around here; I believe this is just about the best we can find. But it's spacious and there's room, which is good," Will explained. "We are a rather large group now; it will be nice to have proper space to oneself."

"What do you mean?" Sain inquired like a little child.

"Sain," Will sighed, shaking his head, "we have quite a lot of people now, but barely enough mounts, Arthiel rides with Lyn and I ride with you."

"But we're a wonderful traveling group!" Sain protested, smiling. "And if you don't like riding with me, you could always ask Florina!"

"What are you talking about Sain? She's terrified of men!" Will frowned.

"Yes, but she seems to warming up to you, her knight in shinning…uh…her knight of pointed sticks! You saved her from the bandits!" Sain exclaimed. "And besides, you feel the same, yes?

"What!?" Will cried, completely shocked. "That's completely preposterous! You're insane, you know that?"

"Mmhmm," Sain shook his head slowly. "Denial, tsk, tsk, tsk!"

"Hey!" Will shouted angrily but kept quiet as the others arrived.

"Ah, Lady Lyndis! I was just telling the dear Archer Will here that this place seems a little broken and mildewy for—"

"Its fine Sain, don't worry," Lyn interjected, smiling. "Who wants to be stuck inside anyway? I prefer a place where I can feel the wind blow."

"As long as I'm at Lyn's side, I'll be fine," Florina declared as she and Huey landed beside Zephyr and his two riders.

Sain walked up to try and help any of the three women off their mounts. Lyn swung herself to the ground easily. Florina looked at Sain nervously and dismounted once he backed away. Lunar growled at Sain so that he backed off and Arthiel hopped down, laughing.

"And for your protection, your man-at-arms Sain will be right here by _your_ side ladies," Sain smiled cheekily.

"Sain, both you and I are to remain awake. We will alternate the watch," Kent announced.

"Ah, alas…," Sain sighed, noticing the sky was already darkening and the sun was starting to slowly fall on the horizon.

"May I help?" Arthiel requested, making all five heads turn towards her with confused looks. Lunar merely snorted, as if laughing at the looks they gave her.

"Hm?" the two knights were puzzled.

"I would like to aid to two of you in the night's watch, if you please," Arthiel explained.

"That's alright Arthiel," Kent smiled sweetly. "Sain and I are knights, we are trained for situations like these all the time."

"I know…but I would like to help…," Arthiel said timidly. _That way I might avoid having the damned nightmare this evening…_

"What about your beauty sleep O fair tactician?" Sain asked, leaning closer.

"According to your constant flattery we all get enough beauty sleep already," Arthiel replied, her eyes narrowed although her lips concealed a smile. She turned to Lyn and Kent. "So can I?"

"Of course, if that is what you wish," Lyn answered and Kent nodded.

A noise made them all turn to look at the entrance to the fortress where a woman with shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes stood, leaning on the doorway. "Your pardon milady…"

"Who's there?" Lyn asked, walking over slowly.

"I…Forgive my intrusion, my name is Nathalie. I'm from a village not far from here…," the young woman smiled as best she could. She repositioned herself and winced. "Ah! Ow…"

"Are you all right?" Lyn asked as the others brought up the horses and their belongings.

"Her leg appears to be damaged," Will pointed out, seeing how she was leaning on her right side, lifting the weight from her left leg.

"It's fine, don't worry. It's from a childhood sickness. I can't travel far on it, but it doesn't trouble me much," Nathalie explained.

"What brings you here all by yourself?" Lyn inquired.

"I'm looking for my husband; I heard he was in this area," Nathalie began. "He said he was going to raise money to have my leg mended. He left the village and hasn't returned. He's a kindhearted man, but I think he might be involved in something dangerous. I got so worried…here's a sketch of him."

Nathalie pulled a folded paper from her pocket and handed it to Lyn, who unfolded it and the others crowded around her to examine it.

"It's a poor likeness at best but…," Nathalie sighed. "His name is Dorcas. Do you know of him?"

"I'm sorry to say I don't believe that I've seen or heard of him," Lyn shook her head sadly.

"I see…if you do meet him, please give him a message," Nathalie requested. "Tell him Nathalie is looking for him."

"I will tell him, I promise," Lyn nodded.

"Are you all staying here for the night?" Nathalie inquired,

"Yes we will, hope you don't mind," Lyn replied. When Nathalie smiled sweetly, the green-haired young woman turned to look at Kent.

"We shall take turns keeping watch now, please go inside and rest easily," Kent told her before she had time to ask.

"Is that all right? Are you sure?" Lyn questioned. "Sain!"

The green-armored knight scurried over to stand beside his companion.

"You both make sure nothing happens to Arthiel on night guard!" Lyn ordered and Arthiel giggled as both knights nodded enthusiastically.

"Ye-Yes! Of course!" Sain exclaimed. "We also have Lunar to aid us in protecting the lovely tactician!"

"Let me warn you…if bandits sneak up on you, they will cut you down without mercy. Do you understand that?" Lyn told them.

"What are you saying? Am I not a knight? There's no need to worry so! Right Kent?" Sain said hurriedly.

"If there's anything suspicious, we will take care of it," Kent nodded. "Please be assured."

"Alright goodnight then," Lyn nodded as Florina and Will followed Nathalie inside with the horses and the Pegasus. "Arthiel, be careful."

"I will," Arthiel smiled reassuringly.

"See you tomorrow," Lyn waved as she walked over to the entrance."

"Yup!" Arthiel called after her before turning to look at Kent and Sain.

"Alright, Sain you looked at this place earlier, how many entrances?" Kent asked his companion.

"Two, the large main one over there and the east door," Sain replied.

"Alright, Sain and I shall guard the main entrance; do you think you and Lunar can handle the east door?" Kent questioned Arthiel.

"Of course!" Arthiel exclaimed brightly. The men nodded to her before she and Lunar walked off in the direction of the east gate.

"Think she'll be ok?" Sain turned to Kent with a questioning gaze.

"We'll check up on her on a scheduled basis this night, alright?" Kent inquired.

"Of course," Sain nodded_  
_

* * *

_--------__**F**__i__**R**__e__** E**__m__**B**__l__**E**__m__--------_

* * *

Arthiel gazed up into the starlit sky, sighing. Although she was not sleeping to have the nightmare, she was still thinking about it. Pieces of it were playing through her head, causing so many questions to arise in her mind. 

Lunar could apparently sense her uneasy feelings and was shifting repeatedly around. Currently, he had taken up a position curled on the grass a few feet away from the rock Arthiel sat on.

Because she was so lost in her thoughts, she squealed when a hand tapped on her shoulder.

"Sorry Arthiel, did I startle you?" Sain asked as he sat down beside her.

"Yes, but it's alright," Arthiel smiled sweetly.

"Too lost in your thoughts then?" Sain inquired, smirking.

"Slightly, as well as the night sky," she answered looking up at the stars again.

"It is a beautiful night," Sain agreed, sighing.

"What brings you out here? Worried?" Arthiel laughed.

"A little, but Kent's being the real worry-wart," Sain replied, equally laughing.

"I know he's been protective of me and Lyn ever since we began traveling together in Bulgar," Arthiel stated, tearing her eyes from the stars to look at Sain, who wore a grand smirk. "What?"

"Yes, that he has," Sain nodded, still smirking. "A little overprotective if you ask me."

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing," Sain smiled. "I was merely observing that although Kent is protective of Lyn for she is the Marquess' granddaughter and it is our mission to bring her to him, he's equally and especially protective of you."

"W-Why?" Arthiel stammered a little nervously. "You don't think it's because he—"

"Worry not Arthiel, my boon companion's heart still remains his own," Sain laughed and Arthiel visibly relaxed.

"Then why?" she pressed Sain for answers, knowing if anyone knew, it would be Kent's fellow knight and closest friend.

"I believe it has something to do with the feeling of familiarity you two have to one another," Sain explained.

"But I my memory is locked away from me, so I…cannot know why he is familiar," Arthiel sighed.

"Exactly," Sain stated. "You are not sure of what you had before Lyn found you, except for Lunar. None of us know if you had family of the like before…"

"What does that have to do with Kent?" Arthiel asked. "You better not pull one of those sibling assumptions again."

"I'm not," Sain told her, waving his hands before him in defense. "It's just that…I believe Kent is beginning take up such a role, as an older brother of sorts…because he knows you do not know if you had family or siblings before. And because he…"

"He what?" Arthiel questioned, whipping her head up from the spot on the ground she'd been staring at.

"I've already said too much I…," Sain sighed. Arthiel regarded him with a pleading and worried look. "Promise you will not say a word to him about this? He'd have my head."

"I promise," Arthiel nodded.

"You see, when Kent and I were in training to be a Knight, merely two Cavaliers at the age of thirteen," Sain began, "he lost his family."

"He did? How?" Arthiel inquired worriedly.

"We were always away from home at the training camp so he wasn't there when it happened but someone, or something, attacked his home," Sain sighed. "His parents had been found dead inside their home and his young sibling was gone."

"Kent had a younger sibling? Was it a boy or a girl?" Arthiel asked. _Sain sure knows how to keep someone interested in a story like this…only gives half the information to leave the listener wanting to know more._

"A younger sister," Sain replied and Arthiel's eyes widened. "Yes, you see now why he took a brotherly role to you? What he will not reveal is that you remind him very much of his younger sister, orange hair like his and bright blue eyes…which brings him to want to protect you and help you find your answers even more."

"So that's why you always joke about us being long lost siblings…because his sister never turned up. And that's why he always gets so mad about it," Arthiel sighed. More questions suddenly popped into her head. "But what was her name? Why hasn't he ever told me this? How much of an age difference was there?"

"He's very good at hiding things, but tells me it has been so long her name has been lost to him," Sain shrugged. "My mind is not the clearest, and it has been many years, so I don't know it either. Besides, we were only thirteen at the time and…ahem…I was busier with girls my age rather the eight-year-old sister of my best mate. As to why he hasn't told you, I do not think he wished to worry you or scare you with this information."

"So there were five years difference between them…," Arthiel sighed, gathering the information. "Wait! How old are you and he?"

"Aahahaha! What are we playing '_Twenty Questions_'?" Sain laughed and Arthiel giggled. "Kent and I are now 24 years of age, so it has been eleven years."

"That's so sad…," Arthiel whispered, gazing at the stars again as a silence filled the air.

Suddenly Lunar's ears perked up and he rose to his feet, the hair on his back rising. He was growling at the shadows of the trees in the distance and his eyes were dark.

"What is it Lunar? What have you sensed?" Arthiel inquired as she and Sain rose to their feet swiftly at the sight of the hostile Lunar. Both peered into the darkness of the night and gasped when they spotted many shadows moving around, preparing to come closer. Flashes of silver blades or axes were occasionally seen.

The two exchanged glances before running inside as fast as they could_.  
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"Lady Lyndis! Outside the fortress! Bandits!" Sain exclaimed as they reached the large room where everyone was camped out. Kent came in through another door. 

"What did you say?" Lyn mumbled as she and the others were jolted awake.

"Bandits have surrounded us Lyn!" Arthiel cried worriedly.

"Persistent bunch aren't they?" Will inquired, sighing. "What do you think? Shall we go and face them?"

"No, Nathalie cannot more well, and that would put her in danger," Lyn shook her head. "Let them come to us, we'll fight them here, within these walls. Arthiel, take over. The command is yours, all we have to do is hold out until they tire and leave."

"Deal," Arthiel nodded.

"Oh…," Nathalie whispered with unease.

"Rest easy Nathalie, no one will harm you! Our tactician will make sure of this, yes?" Lyn smiled.

"Of course," Arthiel nodded again before turning to look at the others, who suited up and readied their weapons. "Listen up everyone! Fight with caution! Kent and Sain, I want you to cover the main entrance and stand your ground."

The two knights nodded and mounted Blaze and Caspian before riding off towards the main gate.

"Will, you and Florina take the west side because Florina can mount Huey and provide aerial support while you fire over the walls, there are places to climb," Arthiel continued. The Archer nodded and darted off down the hall while Florina and Huey jumped into the air, flying off after him.

"Lyn, you and I will watch the east entrance," Arthiel told the green-haired girl.

"What about Nathalie?" Lyn inquired and Arthiel smiled.

"Lunar!" Arthiel called and the black wolf trotted over, nuzzling her happily. "Nathalie, this is my friend and guardian, Lunar. He will guard you, but do not be afraid; he is very friendly to those he knows I trust, such as yourself. He will not harm you and will defend you valiantly if any bandits slip by."

"But won't you need him? He is after all your guardian for you carry no weapons," Nathalie pointed out nervously.

"Don't worry about me, I may not have a weapon but believe I am agile enough to evade some form of combat," Arthiel smiled.

"Alright, thank you," Nathalie returned the smile. Lyn and Arthiel nodded before darting off down the third hall that led to the east entrance Arthiel had come from moments before. Lyn drew the Mani Katti as they ran.

When they reached the east gate all seemed well in the night as their eyes adjusted compared to the light they'd had on the inside. It was then that Lyn heard a noise and she squinted her eyes in time to see a silver projectile heading towards her companion a few feet away.

"Arthiel watch out!" she screamed.

On Lyn's warning, the orange-haired girl noticed the muscular bandit that had thrown his axe and ducked in time for it to fly by and crash into the stone wall, getting wedged between two thick blocks.

The two young women darted off to the tree line as the man ran over to remove his weapon, not paying attention to where they'd gone. He seemed to be the only one around here for now.

"Hey Lyn," Arthiel began in whispers, "the man who just attacked me…doesn't he look somewhat like that picture of Nathalie's husband?"

"Why yes…he does…," Lyn breathed, wide-eyed. They exchanged glances before rushing from their hiding place towards the east entrance where he was struggling to pull his axe from the wall.

Lyn danced on her light feet and brought up her blade to hang before him, mere inches away and he backed away from his weapon slowly. "Tell me," Lyn began, keeping her sword pointed at him as Arthiel kept watch around. "Are you Dorcas?"

"How do you know my name?" he grunted, completely taken aback.

"Nathalie told me. What are you doing with these rogues?" Lyn replied.

"I need money…," Dorcas sighed.

"That may be but…joining up with bandits and mercenaries?" Arthiel asked slowly.

"It's the only way to earn gold in these parts," Dorcas said with much shame. "I'll do anything…even this."

"For gold? Anything?" Lyn questioned.

"Would you hurt your wife?" Arthiel inquired and Dorcas' head snapped up to look at her. "Nathalie is here! We're protecting her within this fortress!"

"What?! Nathalie's…she's here?" Dorcas pressed them for information worriedly.

"She was so worried she came looking for you," Lyn explained. "Think Dorcas! Would your actions please your wife?"

"…You're right," Dorcas sighed, shaking his head in shame again.

"Well?" Lyn waited for the response.

"I understand. I can't do this," Dorcas stated, looking up proudly. "I'm done with these bandits. Here and now."

"Really?" Arthiel seemed amazed that they'd gotten through to him that quickly.

"Yes…And I would repay you for your kindness towards Nathalie. Allow me to fight for you," he replied.

"Alright then," Lyn nodded. "This is Arthiel, our tactician. You take your orders from her."

"Lyn," Arthiel began. "I'm going to take Dorcas to see Nathalie, are you alright guarding this entrance alone?"

"Of course, there seems to be no one out here right now, the others probably are doing all the fighting," Lyn smiled.

"Alright, I'll send Lunar to help in a few moments when we get there," Arthiel declared before running off, Dorcas on her heels_  
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"Nathalie!" Dorcas exclaimed as he and Arthiel ran into the room where Nathalie sat by her belongings with Lunar. Seeing his master, Lunar scurried over to Arthiel. 

"Is that you Dorcas?" Nathalie asked, peering through the dim light the lamp projected.

"Nathalie!" Dorcas cried again as he rushed over to her and kneeled to the ground to wrap her in an embrace. "Are you all right? What were you thinking, coming out all this way?"

"I was worried about you," Nathalie whimpered, hugging her husband. Arthiel smiled before sending Lunar off down the hall to go watch the east door with Lyn. "Please, don't let my leg trouble you anymore. You mustn't put yourself in such danger. Please!"

"I'm sorry," Dorcas sighed. "I must have been out of my head. I didn't realize…Lyn and Arthiel here made me open my eyes."

Nathalie looked up, finally noticing Arthiel was there and the young girl smiled sheepishly, waving slightly. "You and Lyn…you spoke with him?"

"Yep, guess he'd been ordered to check the east entrance and we recognized him from the picture you had so we decided to talk to him," Arthiel grinned widely. Dorcas gave her a glance that held a 'thank you' in it as he was grateful she hadn't mentioned how he'd tried to chop off her head first.

"I'll explain later," Dorcas smiled. "We've got to drive back these bandits first. Listen, stay put and don't more from here. Arthiel and I shall go help the others."

"I don't think that'll be necessary," Lyn announced as she and the others filed in, all covered in cuts and scrapes but nothing serious.

Upon seeing Arthiel's nervous glances as to Lunar's absence, Kent spoke up. "He's gone to make sure there are no stragglers, the rest have fled."

"Good," Arthiel smiled sweetly, making him smile as well. "Thank you."

"They have left me…thank goodness," Dorcas sighed. He turned to look at his wife. "I'm sorry Nathalie…"

"All's well that ends well," Lyn announced. "Right Nathalie?"

The brunette nodded and Dorcas got up to smile at the company before him. "Our village is close," he explained. "I'll take Nathalie home and return tomorrow."

"Even in the dark?" Florina asked worriedly.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," Dorcas reassured her and she nodded, shrinking away behind Huey slightly. Will smiled sympathetically at her.

"Hm? You're returning tomorrow? Why can't we just say our farewells today?" Lyn asked, puzzled.

"Actually Lyn…he wants something else, correct Dorcas?" Arthiel smiled, having talked with him on the way here from the east gate. A short run, yes, but enough to talk briefly of a few things.

"Yes, I…well I spoke with Arthiel after leaving you at the east gate earlier Lyn," Dorcas began. "I…I've been invited to join your group."

"Really?" Lyn raised an eyebrow, looking at Arthiel. The orange-haired girl giggled a little nervously and smiled sheepishly. She turned back to look at Dorcas. "But we're going to Lycia…"

"I have to earn money somewhere," Dorcas replied. "If you think I'll be of use, I'd like to fight for you. You helped my wife. I owe you."

"Dorcas…," Lyn breathed.

"Please Lyn, we are both in agreement on this," Nathalie exclaimed, making Dorcas looked at her with a shocked expression, for they certainly hadn't talked about it yet. "Watch over my husband."

"Alright, we shall see you tomorrow Dorcas," Lyn smiled as the married couple got to their feet and Nathalie said her _goodbyes_ and _thank you_'s before they left.

The green-haired girl turned to the three people that were going on watch duty again just as the furry black wolf returned. Florina and Will had already returned to their earlier sleeping rolls.

"Will you three be fine on watch once more?" Lyn inquired and the three nodded. "Alright, goodnight then."

"Goodnight," came Kent, Sain and Arthiel's chorused response as they walked off down their respective corridors – Arthiel and Lunar to the east gate and the two knights to the main gate_  
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**Lannie:** Ah, chapter four. At first, I didn't like this chapter; it followed the game to a point. So, I changed it. I made it nighttime already rather than afternoon and mixed it up a little, changing the few scenes that already existed as well as adding a bit about Kent's past in the conversation between Sain and Arthiel. Yes that information was purely fictional, never happened in the game. Oh, and I changed my spacers!!! Hurray for getting bored of writing cheesy bolded spacers! 

Alright, so I hope you enjoyed, R&R like always!

P.S. I'm still looking for a new title, since this once bothers me. Just gotta keep "Blazing Swords" in it. Suggestions welcome, thanks.


	6. Chapter 5: Trouble At The Border

_**Lannie:**__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo.  
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_**Chapter Five: Trouble at the Border**_

The next day, the company stopped for a little bit of a rest at noon in an open field, feeling the breeze relax them.

"We've almost reached the Lycian border," Kent announced as he, Lyn, Sain and Will stood around in a form of meeting to discuss plans. Meanwhile, Florina and Arthiel sat together, giggling as they went. Lunar slept comfortably nearby along with Dorcas, who kept watch over the two giddy girls.

"Once we cross, we'll be safe from the bandits, right?" Lyn inquired.

"We should be, I doubt they'll be willing to pursue us across the border," Will replied.

"Lycia at last! It's been a long time," Sain sighed with delight. "Tomorrow, we'll dine on a feast of Lycia's finest foods! And the mistress of the inn at the crossing is said to be a beauty! Ah yes, food and love. No better way to restore a man's soul! This is going to be a fine evening, eh Kent?"

The red-armored knight merely shook his head and sighed. "If your behavior is as deplorable as ever, we'd best stay elsewhere," he stated. "We're not here for sightseeing Sain!"

"Oh come now! That's not fair!" Sain whined.

"Kent, the inn will be fine," Lyn announced.

"As you say milady," Kent shrugged.

"Lyndis! You are truly an angel from on high!" Sain exclaimed happily.

"It's nothing, forget it," she smiled. The other three came up at the mention of the inn while Lunar stayed curled up where he was, resting.

"Ah! We'll finally be able to get a good night's sleep!" Florina exclaimed, clasping her hands together.

"I can't wait," Arthiel agreed, smiling. Movement caught her eye and she turned, thinking it was Lunar running around. However, she watched as several bandits scattered across the field, hiding by trees or small houses. "Oh no…those bandits are persistent, I'll give them that much."

"Ah! Here they are! I've found 'em!" one of the bandits shouted as he came nearer.

"What? Not again! They're still after us?" Will complained.

"Hehehehe!" the leading bandits called to them. "Don't think you're getting away so easily!"

"You leave alive, and everyone'll think the Ganelon Bandits have gone soft!" one of his followers shouted.

"So? We care nothing for you or your reputations! We must get to Lycia! Get in our way, and you'll pay!" Lyn yelled.

"Cheeky little thing aren't you?" the head bandit rumbled with laughter. He turned to the fields where the others were scattered around them. "Let's get 'em lads! And no holding back just cause there's women with 'em! Wipe 'em out!"

Florina, Kent and Sain ran to their mounts while Arthiel called out her orders to the companions on foot, and they took off, the two knights and the Pegasus Knight following soon after_  
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A little ways away, in a small forest that was situated almost in the middle of the field, a young woman and a young man walked in circles, getting more and more aggravated with every minute. 

"Ooooh…we're lost! This makes me _so_ mad!" the girl whined. She had mid-back length faded pink hair that was tied in two pigtails and purple eyes. She wore a strapless white dress that fell straight to her ankles, with a purple trim at the bottom. Draped across her shoulder was a purple scarf that fell away to her back and stopped a few inches before dress. She had on white gloves that went to her elbows and a blue belt tied loosely around her waist, with plain brown sandals.

"You told me you were certain this was the correct path," the guy huffed with annoyance, his dark purple eyes narrowed at her. He'd had to listen to the girl whine and complain and babble their entire journey and he was quite fed up. He sighed and shook his head, causing locks of his wavy purple hair to fall into his eyes.

He had a blue long-sleeve shirt on with a yellow belt, loose brown shorts that ended just past his kneed and his brown boots began just after that. Matching his belt, he wore short yellow open-fingered gloves. Draped over his shoulders was a beautiful red cloak that went down to his knees and sported a hood at the back.

"What's your point Erk? What are you trying to say?" the girl asked with a high-pitched voice.

"I swear, you are NOT the woman I agreed to escort!" Erk exclaimed, clutching the red book in his right hand tighter.

"What?" she regarded him curiously. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I hear someone was needed to escort a frail Lycian priestess to Ostia…," Erk began, walking towards a lighter area in the forest.

"Yes, and I'm that priestess," she said proudly.

"Frail? You?" Erk scoffed. "Serra, you have no need of an escort to protect you. Even the most hardened criminal would flee in terror after five minutes in your company. I'll return your money. Gladly. Now, will you please go on to Ostia alone?"

"NO! You're _**my**_ escort Erk! MINE!" Serra shouted. "You're so clean and tidy. A noblewoman like myself can't be seen without a proper escort. Your personality's nothing special, but you're not bad to look at."

"I believe that's my line," Erk mused, making Serra squeak indignantly. "And I have to take you all the way to Ostia? I only hope my nerves can endure the journey…"

"What are you talking about Erk?" Serra inquired as they finally reached the exit to the forest. "You're so gloomy!"

Once they adjusted to the sudden flood of light, Serra peered across the fields and spotted a group of people and some others surrounding them throughout the fields.

"Hm? Something's happening over there!" Serra frowned. "Let's take a look!"

And with that she was off, holding up her dress with one hand and clutching her staff in the other as she scurried through the grass.

"Of course," Erk groaned, shaking his head. "The first opportunity to get involved in trouble of some sort, and she jumps at it. No amount of money is worth this. Hoo…"

He followed quickly and reached her side. They examined the group of fighters closely as the battle went on. Two knights on horses, one in green and one in red, along with a female Pegasus Rider had formed a defensive perimeter around the rest of the people, who were on foot, along with another horse and a wolf.

In the middle, there was an Archer, who fired arrows at the distant target, and a few archers from the opposing team were already gone, taken care of by the wolf. A green-haired woman with a sword and agile frame stood in the middle of the circle with a petite cloaked girl with orange hair and a muscular man carrying an axe.

"Wow! A fight! A fight!" Serra squealed excitedly. "Erk! Take a look! Fighting those bandits…there are young girls!"

"Fool! Keep your voice down!" Erk warned, pulling Serra back a bit. Unfortunately one of the bandits nearby had heard her and rushed over, brandishing his axe menacingly.

"Eh? What's this? You in league with that she-devil?" the bandit asked angrily.

"Hm?" Serra looked puzzled, as if she didn't understand what the bandit was saying – which she probably didn't.

"Ah, this is so wrong…," Erk sighed, seeing the bandit raise his axe with a mischievous glare.

"Ha! I'll take care you of with one swift stroke!" he jeered.

"Eeeeek! Eeeeeeek! Eeeeeeeeek!" Serra screamed in panic, causing Erk to cover his hears with his hands. "Erk! Help me!"

"So…loud…," Erk groaned. His head snapped up and he clutched his book, shoving Serra behind him. "Serra! Behind me!"

The bandit smiled and Erk narrowed his eyes at him, flipping his book open. "You there! See if you can match me!

He raised his right arm and muttered the incantations inscribed on the page, creating a ball of fire in his palm that shot towards the bandit, hitting him scare in the chest. The bandit was thrown backwards and cursed loudly, calling others to his aid_.  
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After Florina had risen into the air to avoid the incoming bandit, Dorcas had tackled him while Arthiel directed Lyn to get the second bandit. It was then that a girlish high-pitched scream broke the tension of the battle. 

Lyn glanced up after putting her opponent out of his misery and spotted a pink-haired girl behind a purple-haired boy who was wielding fireballs. Bandits had surrounded them.

"That scream…Look! Arthiel, someone's over there!" Lyn exclaimed, pointing. Arthiel nodded and called to Dorcas and Lunar, leaving Will to continue aiding the three fighters who sat upon their steeds.

Arthiel squealed as one bandit threw himself at her, his blade swinging but Dorcas block him and threw him to the ground before finishing him off. He smiled at Arthiel, who nodded gratefully.

"Excuse me…hello?" Lyn spoke up as they reached the two strangers. Dorcas and Lunar immediately took up defensive position around the group, looking intimidating to the bandits as a warning to back off.

"Hm? What's this?" Serra mumbled, seeing members of the group she and Erk had spotted earlier had come to see them.

"Why are you fighting these bandits?" Lyn inquired.

"It…just happened," Erk explained as he shot off another fireball at a bandit that had tried sneaking up on them in an area Dorcas and Lunar were not watching. The fire-user posted himself to watch that direction.

"That's not true!" Serra whined. "Those ruffians thought that we were with you! You got us into a terrible situation! Now, how are you going to get us out?"

"Serra!" Erk exclaimed in a scolding tone, glancing over his shoulder briefly at the pink-haired girl. "If you'd not been so meddlesome this all could have been avoided."

Serra snorted angrily and Erk looked at Lyn and Arthiel. "My apologies, trouble yourself with us no more."

"But…if you're going to have to fight anyway, shouldn't we team up? It will end things faster, correct?" Arthiel asked.

"That's true…Yes! That's a good idea!" Serra giggled. She turned to look at her companion, who was currently in a long-distance match with an archer. An arrow whizzed by, just clipping him on the left arm and he nearly dropped his book before firing another ball of fire, hitting the archer in the face. "Erk! Go and help these ladies!"

"Isn't that what I'm…fine!" Erk shouted with annoyance and Lyn and Arthiel had to hold back slight laughs. Lyn stepped forward and extended the hand that did not hold her sword.

"Very well, my name is Lyn," she smiled. "That is Arthiel, Dorcas and the wolf is Lunar. So tell me, will you join arms with us?"

"Yes, we'd be glad to," Serra nodded. "Isn't that right Erk?"

"Yeah…," he sighed in defeat, knowing he had no other choice.

"My name is Serra, and this is my escort Erk," Serra smiled. She glanced at the purple-haired Mage. "Be a good boy, and go fight now Erk."

Erk sighed, shaking his head before shrugging and going back to the defensive position he had earlier. Lyn joined him to cover the fourth front, making a circle around Arthiel and Serra.

"So, Serra, what are your and Erk's professions?" Arthiel asked.

"Hm?" Serra frowned, confused as to why she wanted to know.

Dorcas retrieved his axe from the back of another bandit and pointed at Arthiel. "Tactician," he grunted simply before resuming the fight.

"OH!" Serra laughed. "I see…well, I am a noble Cleric, and my escort here is Mage."

"Alright," Arthiel nodded, gathering the facts. She glanced around the field, counting what was left of the enemy's forces.

_Five bandits attacking the other group, that's fine, they can handle it without me,_ she thought to herself. _Lyn's fighting three, Dorcas has three, and Lunar and Erk are working on two others. I believe that's all except the head bandit…oh no wait he's fighting Lyn._

"By the way Arthiel," Serra poked at the orange-haired girl's shoulder, making her return her attention to the cleric.

"Hm?" Arthiel looked at her quizzically.

"See Erk there? I think he's been hurt by the Archer before," Serra began. "As I mentioned ealier, he is my escort, meaning I am his employer. '_Master_' I suppose you could say. What I'm getting at is…I was thinking of healing him free of charge."

Arthiel raised an eyebrow and Serra smiled with joy. "I know, I know, I'm generous to a fault!" she exclaimed. Had Arthiel been drinking anything when the cleric said this, she probably would've spit it right out her nose for she snorted quite hard with laughter.

"What? Why did you do that? Praise my generosity!" Serra whined.

"It would be nicer if you wished to do this of good heart," Arthiel told the girl.

"Right…anyway that's the deal," Serra shrugged. "Can we get there please?"

"Sure," Arthiel nodded, grabbing the girl's arm.

Lunar saw them coming and took over the fighting, jumping at the last bandit that remained between himself and Erk. The Mage turned to see Serra and Arthiel arrive.

Arthiel motioned to Serra, who nodded and approached Erk. "You've been hurt…by that arrow earlier…," she said in a gentle tone.

"Oh I…well no…I…," Erk stammered and tried to act as if he was fine. Serra frowned and grabbed his left arm, making him cry out as she lifted his sleeve and brushed away his cloak to reveal a thin bleeding line on the side of his arm. It may not be long, but it was deep, and bleeding steadily now.

"Silly Erk," Serra shook her head and ordered him to keep his arm steady as she grabbed his staff with both hands. She whispered the healing prayers of St. Elimine and before he knew it, his arm was healed and he was fully revitalized.

"Thank you Serra," Erk mumbled a little shyly, nodding appreciatively as he rolled down his sleeve and rearranged his cloak.

"You're welcome!" Serra smiled. She broke the slightly nice silence by speaking again. "You just better be lucky you're my escort and you got hurt helping me because for that I won't ask—"

"Serra, don't ruin it," Arthiel told her and Erk laughed as Serra shut up, pouting.

"You won't be laughing long boy!" the head bandit had left Lyn to his two companions and had found his way over here. Arthiel glanced at Lunar, who was still busy wrestling with the bandit, snarling and biting away. Erk placed himself in front of the two girls protectively as he opened his book again.

"You are Arthiel correct?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at the orange-haired girl, who nodded. "I'm not sure how I got into this mess…"

"I believe it's complicated for all of us," she smiled sympathetically before he continued.

"I'm going to fight however, and I will show you the true power of magic!" he exclaimed, raising his right arm.

"And you're gonna learn why people fear the Ganelon Bandits and me, Bug!" the bandit shouted as he used his axe to block the fireball Erk tried to hit him with.

Erk, Serra and Arthiel paused anything they were doing or thinking to stare at the bandit for a moment. "Your name's…Bug?" Arthiel asked, raising an eyebrow questioningly at the enemy.

"Yes…," he frowned.

"That's _hilarious_!" Serra was giddy with laughter and couldn't stop herself as the peals of giggles came rolling out, making her double over.

Bug growled and flung his axe at them, which Erk deflected with a fairly large fireball. Lunar, who had finished the other bandit, lunged at Bug from behind, hooking his claws into the man's back and biting his ear.

"Owwwwwww!" Bug screamed in agony. Erk looked at Arthiel, who nodded, and he summoned all the magic he could as he read a fairly large incantation.

"Looks like I'm gonna roast a bug then," he mused as he finished, flame dancing around him.

"Lunar, off!" Arthiel yelled and her black wolf obeyed, jumping off just as Erk sent a wave of fire at the bandit, roasting him to the core. He fell to the ground, limp.

"Nice job you four," Lyn commented as she walked up, holding her sword arm slightly with the other. She glanced at Kent's group and watched as he and Sain chased off the last two bandits while Florina and Will began walking over, joined by Dorcas halfway.

"That should just about do it," Lyn announced. She winced when her sword arm moved. Arthiel nudged the still-laughing Serra, who noticed this and went quiet, walking up with her staff. She whispered more praying words and Lyn was able to move her arm again.

"You are quite strong Lyn," Serra commented.

"Thank you," Lyn smiled. "Well your staff is a wondrous thing. Healing powers amaze me."

"Only those in the service of good can wield them," Serra stated proudly and Erk smirked, amused by her always-so-perky attitude that often annoyed him.

"Well you helped us tremendously, both you and Erk, thanks," Arthiel said.

"I agree. However, it's time for us go," Lyn nodded, noticing Dorcas conversing with Florina and Will a few feet away. Kent and Sain were a fair distance away, turning to come back.

"Take care, goodbye," Serra smiled sweetly.

"Fare you well Serra," Lyn returned the smile. "You too Erk."

"Goodbye," Erk nodded as Lyn went off to rejoin her companions, since the knights had now arrived. Arthiel stayed there, waiting for Lunar since he was busy burying something by the edge of the woods.

"Well, let us be on our way Erk," Serra stated.

"What have we here? Another wildflower? Perhaps a butterfly?" Sain inquired as he walked up to the three, smiling cheekily as usual.

"Oh boy…," Arthiel rolled her eyes. Erk saw this and laughed slightly.

"What an absolute delectable creature!" Sain exclaimed, taking one of Serra's hands and kissing the top.

"Oh my!" Serra giggled. "Are you one of Lyn and Arthiel's companions?"

"Please, call me Sain," the green knight smiled.

"I'm Serra," she replied. "I serve House Ostia."

"Serra!" Erk warned.

"Serra…what a lyrical name," Sain mused. "I am in service to Castle Caelin."

"Oh! So is Lyn a member of the Marquess' family then?" Serra inquired.

"She is the granddaughter of the Marquess himself," Sain replied.

"Sain!" Arthiel scolded, knowing he shouldn't go around telling everyone.

"Such an important person," Serra thought aloud.

"Serra, what deviousness are you contemplating now?" Erk groaned, knowing the look on her face was not good.

"Tee hee!" she giggled excitedly. She turned to him slightly, making sure only he heard her next sentence. "Having a person of power in your debt is never a bad thing!"

"Oh lord…you can't be serious…," Erk whacked his forehead with his own hand, sighing.

"Oh Sain!" Serra exclaimed, turning back around to the knight. "Do you think we could join the Lady Lyndis' company? She seems like such a nice person, and I would ever so much like to help her."

"Of course! We couldn't be happier!" Sain's face lit up.

"Need I remind you it's not exactly your choice who we hire or bring with us?" Arthiel regarded him seriously as Lunar returned to her side finally.

"How true! Lyn and yourself are the ones who usually ask people to join us or accept the fact!" Sain snapped his fingers, the thought clicking in his mind.

"I did that last time for Dorcas but…I…," Arthiel stammered.

"Oh but Lady Arthiel, my beautiful and favorite tactician, they would be a wonderful addition to the team! The Mage here is a wondrous long-distance fighter or up-close fighter, and we could definitely use Serra's healing magic…since you're not so good at first aid…"

"Sain, its difficult enough traveling right now, having only four mounts able to carry two riders," Arthiel began, ignoring his insult about her poor bandaging skills. "I ride with Lyn, Dorcas rides with Kent, and Will rides with you. With the addition of two more people and only Florina left on her Pegasus Huey…it might work but…you know how Florina is…she's uncomfortable around men."

"Then the lovely cleric Serra can ride with Florina, along with Will, since she and the Archer seem to be getting close despite modest Florina's shyness. Erk here can ride with me to replace Will," Sain explained. "There you go! Problem solved!"

"I don't know…," Arthiel hesitated.

"Please? I'm sure it will work! And we were only just saying we needed more fighting power!" Sain exclaimed. Serra's ears perked up.

"Are you being hunted or something?" she inquired.

"Yes, it's an inheritance dispute," Sain nodded. "Assassins and horrible henchmen everywhere!"

Arthiel rolled her eyes and opened her mouth to say that he was exaggerating but he covered it quickly with his hand, smiling at the two before him. "Don't mind her, she's in a very snappy mood today."

"I see, your problem is indeed troublesome," Serra nodded. At the shocked and questioning looks Arthiel, Sain and Erk gave her, she waved her hands in front of herself defensively, smiling. "I meant the dispute was troublesome, not you Arthiel!"

Sain let go of the tactician and she elbowed him in the ribs before returning Serra's smiled.

"In that case, me healing staff and Erk's magic should come in handy," Serra stated.

"Well, I err…it sounds…dangerous," Erk mumbled.

"Your staff and magic would be extremely helpful!" Sain said almost pleadingly. "Wouldn't it Arthiel?"

"Why yes it would but--"

"Perfect! Please wait here!" Sain smiled before darting off towards Lyn and the others.

"Is he always like that?" Serra asked, giggling slightly.

"Sadly…yes…," Arthiel sighed.

"Unbelievable," Erk shook his head.

"Anyways, this is fantastic Erk!" Serra exclaimed. "Our good deeds will earn us gratitude beyond imagination!"

"I…I…I think I'm going to be ill," Erk muttered, making Arthiel and Serra laugh_.  
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"That little girl crossed the border?!" an old lord yelled angrily, slamming his fist down onto the arm of the seat he sat in. 

"Y-Yes milord," the soldier nodded. "She's en route to Araphen…"

"Fool! Send out soldiers to meet her!" the man shouted. "Hold nothing back! Do anything to finish this now! First the old man…and now the girl!"

The soldier trembled slightly as his lord rose to his feet but relaxed when the man stalked over to his window.

"They cling to life like a drowning man to a rock!" the lord groaned. He whipped around the glare at the soldier. "Double the poison's strength! If he struggled, hold him down and pour it down his throat! Once the girl is gone, Caelin is all mine! I will let no one stand in my way!"

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**Lannie:** And there you have it, chapter 5. I really love the interaction between Serra and Erk, as well as the others, even if Serra is totally annoying. Alright, not much to say, so I will leave you now, to return to whatever you were doing. I'm gonna hopefully write up at least another chapter or two before I leave for Hawkesbury on Saturday. 

For those who have no idea where Hawkesbury is, that's fine because it's a hole in the middle of nowhere at the Ontario/Québec border.

Hope you enjoyed reading! R&R!!

**EDIT:** I remebered I have hook-up in Hawkesbury because of a dude across the street from my grandma's with wireless internet so worry not, I will write more this weekend even if I'm up there and still post it here! Whoo! Oh yeah, and title!


	7. Chapter 6: Spinning Paths of Thieves

_**Lannie:**__ I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

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_**Chapter Six: Spinning Paths and Thieves**_

"What city is this?" Lyn inquired as she and the group stood in the town square of a very large city. They had arrived that morning. Their horses drank from the fountain as they stood together talking.

"This? This is Araphen. After Ostia, it's the second-biggest city in Lycia," Sain explained.

"The second-biggest hm?" Lyn smiled.

"It does seem awfully busy," Arthiel pointed out and Lyn nodded. "By the way, where's Kent?"

"He said he was going ahead to the castle earlier…," Sain began, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked towards the castle. "Ah! Here he comes now!"

Kent and Blaze slowed their pace, stopping beside the others.

"Milady Lyndis! Let us proceed to the castle. They're prepared supplies for us, The Marquess has agreed to aid us on our journey to Caelin," Kent announced as he dismounted.

"He's going to help us?" Lyn asked with excitement.

"Yes, Araphen and Caelin have enjoyed a sturdy friendship for many years. Once I informed the Marquess of our plight, he agreed to lend us his strength.

"Wonderful!" Arthiel clapped her hands together in happiness.

"If we could pick up some soldiers, the road to Caelin would be that much safe," Kent added.

"M-More people?" Arthiel stammered, suddenly realizing her task as tactician was getting more and more intriguing and yet difficult.

"That's alright Arthiel, you'd do fine commanding a bigger group. Like a true military tactician!" Sain exclaimed, patting her on the back.

"I see…," Arthiel nodded slowly and nervously.

"Yes, on the matter of lack of soldiers," Kent continued. "I'm truly sorry for hardships you've suffered so far."

"Don't be silly," Lyn smiled. "You are so capable Kent."

"Kent!?" Sain cried indignantly and Arthiel giggled.

"Hm?" Lyn frowned, looking at Sain. "Oh, and so are you Sain!"

"Ouch…," Arthiel whispered to Sain, holding back her giggles.

"Be quiet…," Sain stuck his tongue out at Arthiel, who merely continued to giggle. He sighed and turned back to look at Lyn. "Of course I am Lyn!"

"The castle awaits…," Kent reminded them.

"Oh yes, we should be heading for the castle right-OW!" Arthiel cursed lightly as a young man knocked past her. She turned to glare at the back of his sand-colored head as his red cloak billowed in the wind.

Lunar's ears perked up and he growled, sniffing at a pocket of Arthiel's cloak. She frowned and reached in, feeling the pocket empty.

"He…He stole my money!" Arthiel exclaimed angrily. She looked at the others. "Go on ahead to the castle, I will join you after Lunar and I retrieve what is mine!"

Before anyone could protest, Arthiel dashed off through the crowd of people, Lunar sniffing at the air to pick up the scent of the thief. Lunar found the scent and ran for it, following him through the streets. They turned countless corners until they lost him. A few moments later they caught sight of the cloak and ran for it, turning the corner into an alleyway.

"Where…Where is he? I swear he turned in here!" Arthiel grumbled angrily. Lunar crept further into the alleyway, sniffing at the ground. He looked up at her and she walked over to him. On the ground were a few pieces of her gold that the thief had stolen, but it was only a measly amount compared to the money he still had.

"If I find…no _**when**_ I find him, I'll wring his neck!" Arthiel shrieked angrily.

"Someone break your heart little girlie?" a gruff voice asked, hiding a laugh.

"No, someone stole my money!" Arthiel snapped, looking up at the entrance to the alleyway. The man who stood there was not the thief, but a tall muscular man. His face was shadowed because all the light was behind him rather than in the dark alleyway.

When he caught a glimpse of her face however, he gasped and clenched his fists. "You!" he shouted, coming closer. Arthiel stood up and Lunar regarded the man with a warning glare. "You were with that damned plainswoman and the knights at the fortress! You're one of the scums that killed Migal!"

"Uh-oh…Cajiga," Arthiel whispered, taking a step back and clutching her cloak closer to her.

"Well, ain't this a lovely find," Cajiga smirked, edging closer. "Now, I can avenge Migal and get some cash to reform my group of bandits!"

"But I…I have no m-money!" Arthiel stammered as he came closer. She took another step back and nearly tripped over a box. _Stupid thief…this is all your fault! You just had to take __**my**__ money didn't you? Now I'm in deep trouble!_

"Well…I'll just have to take something else won't I?" Cajiga cackled maliciously, cracking his knuckles. Lunar stepped in front of Arthiel protectively, the hairs on his spine raised and his crystal blue eyes radiating with power.

When Cajiga took another step closer, the wolf snarled and snapped at him, narrowly missing his hand with his powerful jaws and sharp teeth. "Damn mutt! Looks like I'm gonna have trouble getting to ya pretty girlie! That's alright…one more obstacle to my prize…"

Cajiga lunged at Arthiel, and Lunar snarled and jumped at him, as the bandit had expected. With one swift motion, he pulled out a knife and ran it along the wolf's side, cutting in. Lunar howled and fell to the ground, lying on the unharmed side and whimpering.

He growled and tried to get up to fight, not wanting anything to happen to Arthiel but his injury prevented him from doing so.

"Lunar!" Arthiel cried with worry as she ran towards her companion.

"No way girl, you're going with me!" Cajiga exclaimed, reaching out to grab her. She darted by so fast that he merely managed to grab the ribbon around her neck. He smirked, tugging on it and expecting it to drag her back, choking. Instead, it untied with a swift and fluid motion, and he found a long blue silk ribbon with two gold bells at the end.

"Well, well, well what do we have here?" he smirked, tapping the bells so they jingled. He tried one of them against his tooth and grinned, laughing. "No money eh? Well, if I sell these golden beauties, I'll sure get a price far better than you!"

"No!" Arthiel pleaded as he scurried off, chuckling to himself. Worry returned as she turned to look at Lunar but the emotion was replaced by both happiness and shock when she saw he was standing up, perfectly all right.

"What in the world…?" Arthiel frowned. Lunar shook the dirt from his fur and licked her face all while wagging his large fluffy tail. Arthiel giggled and patted him on the head. "You really are a strange and mysterious creature, aren't you Lunar? How did you heal yourself so fast?"

He looked up at her with large blue eyes that matched her own and she laughed again, standing up. "Oh, how I wish you could answer me Lunar. Then maybe you could tell me what is blocking my memory of our past…"

He stood up on his hind legs, placing his big paws on her arm and nuzzled her neck, as if asking why it was bare. "The bandit stole it…," Arthiel whispered sadly. "Whatever those bells had been meant for, it is clearly lost…"

Lunar jumped down and she rubbed his head in her hand comfortingly. She smiled and patted his head before walking towards the end of the alley. Together, they exited the alleyway only to find a few citizens running around, screaming frantically.

"This is terrible! The castle is burning!" one man yelled. Arthiel's eyes widened and she grabbed the man by the arm, pulling him back to her.

"What did you say? What's happening?" Arthiel demanded.

"Smoke! From the castle!" the man exclaimed frantically. They both glanced towards the castle and watched as three men came running towards them from a few feet away. "Hey! What are those men doing?"

"Who are you?" Arthiel asked as the leader of the little group approached her, an evil smirk plastered across his features. The citizen she had been questioning darted off, yelling the bad news again.

"You! You're with that Sacaen brat Lyndis aren't you?" he sneered. "Yes, it's unmistakable!"

"Ah! What do you—" Arthiel began but the man grabbed a part of her cloak.

"No questions, you're coming with us! We'll surely get the royal pain If we've got one of her friends!" the man cackled. He began to drag Arthiel towards the castle only to have Lunar growl and lunge at him, biting him in the rear.

He howled in pain and let go of Arthiel's arm, rubbing the bite and cursing loudly. "Why you little…that's it! I played nice, now you're going to get it! You're coming with us dead or alive!"

Arthiel gulped as the two other men lunged at her, and Lunar snarled, attacking them both. The leader snuck around the three entangled fighters and took out his dagger. He charged at her, only to have her swiped away by a red-cloaked blur. The leader stumbled forward, cursing and looking around to find where the girl had gone. Lunar kicked his back legs into the stomachs of the other men, sticking out his claws before he jumped at the leader, biting and barking.

Arthiel opened her eyes slowly after having closed them when the man had lunged at her with a dagger. She found the unfamiliar sight of a red cloak before her and frowned, looking at the young man who held her close to him, up against the wall of a dark alley near where she had been just moments before.

She gasped when she stared into caramel eyes with small strands of sand-colored hair falling into them. She then saw the red clock the young man wore draped over his right shoulder and her eyes narrowed. "You!"

She pushed herself off of him and took two steps back, staring at him with shock. Under the cloak, he wore a faded greed sleeveless, a large brown belt with several little pouches for tools as well as a scabbard for what looked to be a dagger. He also had off-white pants tucked into knee-high brown boots that had green leggings strapped over them by dirty white cloth bands. He had similar green armbands from his wrists to his elbows that were strapped there by two more dirty white cloth bands.

She recovered from her shock and continued to glare at him. "You!" she repeated angrily.

"Do I know you?" he asked, arching an eyebrow and chuckling to himself.

"You're the man that stole my money!" Arthiel shouted. He glanced to the end of the alley before he took a step towards her, covering her mouth with his hand and pressing her against the opposite wall.

"Quiet would you? I just got you away from those assassins, don't go raising your voice and alerting them to our position!" he snapped. She nodded and he backed off before she brought her fist into contact with his shoulder.

"Ow!" he hissed. "What was that for?"

"One – for stealing my money, two – for scaring me like that!" she exclaimed. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got to get Lunar and head to the castle."

She turned to walk away but he grabbed her arm, bringing her back to face him. "No way, it's way too dangerous! Don't go putting yourself back in danger right after I saved you!"

"But Lunar's still out there! I have to go get him!" Arthiel protested.

"He can handle himself, he did a fine job earlier when that bandit attacked you in the alley," the young man smirked and Arthiel's eyes widened.

"What? How did you know about—"

"Bullseye!" he smirked. She said nothing and merely narrowed her eyes again. "Don't be mad, c'mon. I can get you to your friends near the castle the sneaky way. Hire me. For you, I'll even lower my normal rate."

"Who are you?" Arthiel frowned, puzzled by his odd behavior.

"I'm Matthew, a specialist in acquisitions of all kinds," he smiled, extending a hand to her.

"I've no need for a thief," Arthiel retorted.

"Really? Then how do you plan to get to the castle to aid your friends will all the mercenaries and bandits running around threatening to kidnap or kill you?" Matthew inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"I…I just…oh fine, show me the way," Arthiel sighed. "But so help me if you're leading me on or anything ends up happening to Lunar because you made me leave him!"

"Thought never crossed my mind," Matthew smirked before grabbing her hand and racing off down another alley_  
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They finally darted out of the side streets and alleys a few minutes later and found themselves near her friends, who stood at the castle entrance. The two were just in time to watch another mercenary fall to the ground in front of Lyn, who he had apparently tried to attack.

"What? An arrow?" Lyn frowned, puzzled. She looked up towards the castle gates and gasped, pink rising in her cheeks.

A man with layered dark green hair and striking green eyes sat upon a great grey horse. His robes were similar to Lyn's, only they were deep red and the lining had a series of brown triangles. He hand on black pants tucked into thick beige boots and open-fingered gloves on each hand, a blue one on the right, and a beige one of the left. Lastly, he wore a matched deep red bandana tied on his head.

She stared in awe and took a step towards the man. "Who are—"

"Milady Lyndis! Are you all right?" Kent interrupted her question, coming to her side.

"I'm fine," Lyn told him, still staring at the man on horseback. "He…this man saved me."

"May I ask your name?" Kent inquired politely. The rider silently tapped his horse, causing it to take a step back and begin to turn away.

"Wait!" Lyn pleaded, approaching the man again. He paused and looked down at her. "Why did you help me?"

"I thought a Sacaen plainswoman was being attacked," he explained. He looked at the group of people behind Lyn, seeing how large and odd it was. "I was mistaken."

"No, you were right! I am from Sacae," Lyn exclaimed. "I'm Lyn, the daughter of the Lorca chieftain."

"The Lorca?" the rider looked at her with a shocked expression. "There were survivors?"

"Yes," Lyn nodded.

"You should leave at once. A blaze has started in the castle, and it's spreading," he told her. "Don't be foolish and waste the life I just saved."

"You're from the castle? What's happening? How severe is the fire? Is the Marquess safe?" Lyn blurted out.

"The castle is under attack and the Marquess has been accosted," the rider replied. "The man who attacked you was probably one of the marauders. As captain of the castle guard, it's my duty to rescue the Marquess."

"I see…all right then, we'll help you," Lyn stated, smiling.

"Milady?" Kent frowned.

"Why?" the rider inquired.

"These brigands are after me; if they're attacking the castle it's because of me. So I must help if I can…," Lyn explained.

"It sounds like you're involved somehow…let's go," the rider nodded.

"You'll accept our aid?" Lyn inquired, calling Zephyr to her. She mounted just as the rider nodded.

"I am Rath of the Kutolah," he told her. "Our tribes may be different, but I will not abandon a woman of Sacae."

"Thank you Rath!" Lyn smiled sweetly. "A thousand blessings upon you!"

"And a thousand curses upon our enemy!" Rath exclaimed.

"Wait! What about Arthiel?" Serra cried as Florina brought Huey closer.

"Oh no! She and Lunar were chasing after that thief last we saw her! We have to go back!" Lyn shouted, beginning to turn Zephyr around. Rath grabbed the reins from her however and shook his head.

"We cannot! By the looks of your group, your friends shall be able to defend themselves," Rath stated.

"But she's a tactician! She's only got Lunar! We need her! What if something happens and—" Lyn worried but she was interrupted.

"I'm here!" Arthiel exclaimed she raised her arms in the air and the large group turned to look at her. Matthew took this opportunity to try and sneak off but she grabbed his arm.

"Oh no you don't! You stole my money, got me into trouble and made me leave Lunar, you're helping us!" she hissed in whispers before dragging him to the others.

"Isn't that the thief?" Lyn inquired, looking around slightly. "But…where's Lunar?"

"This is the thief and he's going help us because not only did he steal from me and not return the money, he also made me lose Lunar in the city to get away!" Arthiel replied.

"I saved your life!" Matthew protested, trying to wriggle out of her grasp.

"But possibly cost me that of my dearest friend and the closest thing I have to family other than them!" Arthiel shouted angrily, causing him to wince. "You're helping!"

"Rath, meet Arthiel, our tactician," Lyn looked at the other Sacaen, motioning to Arthiel. "You know this place better than us, so if you have any ideas, please discuss them with her."

"Once the Marquess is safe, my men can move in," Rath explained to the tactician, who nodded. "But the front is swarming with enemies…perhaps the secret passageway…"

"Secret passageway?" Arthiel inquired, frowning.

"An underground tunnel leading to the throne room," Rath explained. "There are triggers in the barracks that will open the tunnel."

"Head through the passage to the throne room…and rescue the Marquess," Arthiel repeated the simple idea to herself while forming a plan. "Once that's done, can you drive away the enemy from the castle?"

"Mmm…if we can release those triggers, my men and I can handle the rest," Rath nodded. "There are three triggers, though, in different areas. All three need to be released, or the entrance won't open."

"But the doors to the barracks are lock," Lyn commented.

"The enemy's within. If we don't get inside and finish them, we're stuck," Rath told them. "The guards had keys, and if they were chased away or defeated, the enemies watching the barracks should have the keys now."

"So opening those doors is our first objective," Kent went on as he turned to look at Arthiel. "What shall we do Arthiel?"

"Um…alright…Rath, how are the barracks placed?" Arthiel inquired.

"The first is on the western side, the second is on the eastern front and the third is near the gates here," Rath replied. "The western is the smallest and the furthest, guarded by units on foot. Then the eastern trigger is second, guarded by archers and long-distance fighters. Lastly is the one here, where the passageway is located, it's in the back behind the varied guards."

"Ok, I've got it, thank you," Arthiel nodded. She turned to look at the others. "Dorcas, you will go with Lyn and Rath here to the first trigger in the west."

The three nodded and Lyn got on her horse, Dorcas dismounting from Blaze, Kent's horse, to run on foot. "Florina, Serra, Erk and Will, I want you to take care of the second trigger in the east. Will, Erk, make sure to keep archers away from Florina, alright?"

"Will do," the two men nodded. Erk dismounted Caspian and Will dismounted Huey so that they could take the front while Florina and Serra, on Huey, could follow.

"And lastly, Kent and Sain, you will accompany Matthew and I to the third trigger," Arthiel finished and the two knights nodded. Matthew went to protest but she quieted him with a wave of her hand. "Remember…money, trouble and Lunar; you owe me."

Everyone gathered their orders before going off in separate directions.

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**Lannie:** There we go, knew I'd get at least one more chapter up before I leave for Hawkesbury. Not that it matters anyway, I can still update when I'm there...I think.

Alright so introduction to two more new characters, Matthew the Thief and Rath the Nomad. I completely changed Matthew's introduction for various reasons, mainly because it's more fun. Poor Arthiel, he's getting her into so much trouble, and now she's lost her 'bodyguard'. Heh, I'll fix that don't you worry :)

Anyway, that's all for now, sorry for the cliffhanger. I felt I finally needed one, and besides, if I hadn't, the original chapter "Blood of Pride" would've been HUGE. That's the name of the next chapter in case anyone wondered what I did with it. :) R&R!!!


	8. Chapter 7: Blood of Pride

_**Lannie:**__ I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

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_**Chapter Seven: Blood of Pride**_

"So how long have you been in the castle guard Rath?" Lyn asked as they rode along the castle wall, followed by Dorcas, who watched the rear.

"Quite a few years…," Rath replied, staring ahead. "I came into the guard at an early age and I guess the Marquess was intrigued by my abilities in the matter, for I quickly became the captain of the guard. What of you?"

"I've lived on the plains my whole life…until recently, after my parents were killed. I found Arthiel on the plains, washed up on the river with Lunar, her wolf," Lyn began. "I took her in and helped her and we became friends, so I asked if I could travel with her and Lunar."

"Why does the knight…Kent was it? Why does he call you by a nobler term?" Rath inquired. "Or is it out of respect?"

"Because I am the granddaughter of Marquess Caelin, as Arthiel and I learned a few days after departing my home," Lyn smiled thoughtfully. "We have been traveling towards Caelin with Sain and Kent ever since, and others, like Dorcas here, have joined our cause for various reasons."

"A Sacaen woman…a noble of Lycia? That is an interesting story indeed," Rath mused.

"Perhaps one day I shall tell you the rest?" Lyn inquired. She was so absorbed in their conversation that she did not notice a mercenary come around the corner and lunge at her. Rath grabbed her from her horse as the man slashed out and narrowly missed her. Dorcas then jumped him, axe in hand.

"T-Thank you…," Lyn stuttered, blush creeping onto her cheeks as Rath held her close on his horse.

"Ah…you're welcome," he stated as he helped her down. She smiled up at him and patted his horse on the neck.

She then unsheathed the Mani Katti and held in firmly, telling Zephyr to stay put. Dorcas got to his feet, done with his opponent as they continued.

"I couldn't help but notice but…that blade you carry…," Rath began as he strung an arrow, ready for any surprises. "Is that the sacred sword of Sacae…the Mani Katti?"

"Yes…it's another extraordinary thing that has to me recently…," Lyn smiled proudly. "I do not know how or why, but it chose me."

"A suiting master of both grace and strength in my opinion," Rath stated, making Lyn blush again. Dorcas noticed the two and chuckled silently to himself.

They turned the corner to the barrack and found two soldiers and another mercenary guarding the door. The mercenary appeared to be the boss as he shouted orders to the soldiers and they took up a defensive wall to the three enemies.

Lyn caught sight of a silver flash on the mercenary's belt and she smiled. "Rath, Dorcas…he has a key…," she whispered and the two men nodded.

Dorcas roared and charged the two soldiers, knowing from what Arthiel had told him before that in the weapon triangle, axes beat out lances and unfortunately for these two soldiers, they carried lances.

Dorcas dodged the first soldier as he stuck his lance out, trying to hit him in the stomach and caught him on the side of the neck with his axe, ending him. Rath took care of the second soldier with a flurry of arrows as Lyn streaked across the stone towards the leading mercenary.

Their blades clashed repeatedly as she attacked with grace and speed, light on her feet. The sound of metal clanging against metal resonated in the area as she sped up and the mercenary had to struggle to keep up with her.

Finally, he slowed enough that she was able to swing her blade one way as he parried before quickly bringing it down in another direction and slashing him across his chest, cutting deep and fatally.

She unhooked the key from his belt and proceeded in unlocking the barrack door. Once it clanged open, Rath rode in and found the glowing blue tile, leading his horse to stand on it.

"That takes care of the first one. Two more to go," Rath declared as he dismounted and stood with the others, waiting. Zephyr had rejoined them as well.

"When will we know the others have set off the other triggers?" Dorcas questioned.

"When this one stops glowing," Rath replied, indicating to where his horse stood, sniffling the glowing blue square curiously_  
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"Hey Erk!" Will called to the Mage as they approached the second barrack, which was guarded by looked to be three archers and two mercenaries carrying swords.

"Hm?" Erk turned to look at the brown-haired Archer inquisitively.

"How about show these Archers the power of your magic and my arrows?" Will asked, readying an arrow.

"As in flaming projectiles?" Erk replied with a question, smirking.

"You read my mind," Will smiled.

Florina and Serra, who sat on the currently-grounded Huey, knew the boys had to take care of the archers before Florina could take fly and eliminate to sword-carrying mercenaries with her lance. So they watched,

Erk opened his Fire Spellbook and held it at arms length with his left hand, while placing his right hand at the tip of Will's arrow. He muttered the incantations and the arrow's pointed tip lit up like a match.

The archer smirked and took aim, letting go of the arrow as it whipped through the air, catching the nearest archer by surprise and hitting him in the chest. He screamed and patted at the arrow, trying to get rid of the flames but only made it worse.

His two companions spotted the source of the disturbance and readied their arrows, sending them flying as they reached for more. Eventually a small pack of arrows flew their way and Florina squealed worriedly.

"It's ok Florina, you'll be fine," Will promised as he raised his bow, firing off an arrow that hit one of the oncoming ones and knocked it away. Erk muttered another incantation and create a blast of fire that raced towards the rest of the arrows.

"Isn't that going to make them all flamed?" Serra inquired like a four-year-old.

"Nope, it's strong enough to incinerate them," Erk smirked as his fire reached the arrows and did just that. Meanwhile, Will had strung two arrows in his bow and Erk lighted them before he let go, pummeling one of the enemy archers. They repeated this process on the final archer after Erk incinerated more oncoming projectiles.

"Florina, the field is all yours!" Will declared and the lilac-haired girl nodded, pulling Huey's reins and the Pegasus neighed, rising into the air, his wings beating steadily. Serra smiled – she loved the feel of the wind in her hair when they flew.

Florina told the other girl to hold on tight as they raced towards one of the mercenaries. Huey stopped just before him, causing the mercenary to falter, for he thought it was going to crash and Florina took this opportunity to toss her lance, hitting him square in the chest.

The second mercenary yelled angrily and charged them, only to have Huey snort indignantly and land, kicking his rears legs back with rib-crushing force. The mercenary whimpered as he hit the ground, his sword landing feet away.

Serra hopped off the Pegasus and scurried over to the man, having seen a flash of silver at his waist. She emitted a high-pitched squeak of joy as she spotted the key tied there and reached down, unclipping it.

"Serra!" Erk shouted as she turned around, for he had seen the near-dead mercenary's hand shoot out before she had. It curled around her ankle and she tripped, colliding with the ground moments later.

"Ow! Oh owie!" Serra whimpered, picking up the dropped staff and key and getting to her feet. She kicked the man in his side with anger and caused him to cry out in pain. "Serves you right for tripping me!"

The man grunted as he reached for a disguised dagger in his boot only to have a flaming hand pointed at his face. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," Erk warned.

"Not unless you want your face burned off!" Serra giggled, handing Will the key as the Archer walked over to the barrack door and unlocked it. Florina then guided Huey in and spotted a blue tile on the ground as she dismounted.

"Hey…this just might be the last trigger," Florina smiled. "So I only need to…" She instructed Huey to sit on it and when he did, it clicked.

"There we go!" Will exclaimed happily. "The second trigger is done!"

"And now what do we do?" Serra asked with impatience.

"We wait," Erk told her, being ever watchful of the remaining mercenary on the ground beside him_  
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The two knights crept along the hall a few feet in front of Matthew and Arthiel as they headed towards the third barrack. Upon turning the corner, they halted as they peered down the hallway.

Halfway down the hall was a large locked door to the barrack. At the end of the hall were two lance-wielding soldiers who guarded another locked door.

All three men looked at Arthiel for orders. She took into account their surroundings and looked at Matthew. "You said you were a thief right?"

"I prefer the term _'specialist in acquisitions of all kinds_'," Matthew smirked.

"Right," Arthiel rolled her eyes. She pointed to the locked door before them. "Well then, can you pick that lock?"

"Naturally," Matthew winked cheekily as he walked off towards the door. He kneeled down all while getting out two thin pieces of metal. Placing one directly into the lock, he began working the other through the numerous sections.

Sain and Kent exchanged quizzical glances and raised their eyebrows at the two. Sain smirked mischievously and noticing this, Kent rolled his eyes.

"There ya go! All done!" Matthew exclaimed happily as the final piece clicked open and the lock fell off. His face dropped however when the door swung open to reveal a rather angry-looking man wearing heavy armor. The thief gulped and backed up.

"Bah, you are from that ruddy _Lyndis' Legion_ aren't you? When did you arrive?" the armored man asked. He grunted, grabbing his lance closer to him. "No matter, I shall deal with you."

Kent and Sain blocked the doorway as the man came stomping forwards. Kent glanced over his shoulder. "I can't tell if the trigger is here. You two go and check the other door!"

"But what about you?" Arthiel asked worriedly.

"We'll take care of this man!" Sain cried valiantly, charging Caspian onwards.

"But he…he's incredibly armored and carrying a lance! You two have swords!" Arthiel protested.

"Matthew!" Kent barked and the sandy-haired thief looked up, fully alert. "Take Arthiel with you and investigate the second room! The soldiers are carrying lances and are slow with their armor; it shouldn't be too hard to get by them!"

"Alright," Matthew nodded, grabbing Arthiel's arm and beginning to drag her off as Sain clashed with the man.

"Oh and Matthew!" Kent called to them one last time. The thief rolled his eyes and turned to look at the knight. "Allow her to get hurt, and I'll have your head."

Matthew gulped and nodded before darting off down the hall, taking Arthiel with him. "Dear god, what is he? Overprotective brother? Possessive boyfriend?" Matthew grumbled as they ran.

"Neither," Arthiel muttered, pulling her arm away and running alongside him. He frowned at her behavior but shrugged it off.

As they skidded to a stop before the two soldiers, Matthew pushed Arthiel behind him and whipped out his dagger. Arthiel frowned, looking from him to the two soldiers that were coming closer, lances in hand.

"What are you doing?" she asked him. He merely glanced over his shoulder and smirked at her before darting off towards their enemies. "Matthew!"

He ignored her worried call and charged the first soldier. The man swung his lance upwards at a speed that was much to slow for the nimble thief. Matthew sidestepped it and slid past the soldier, catching him in between two ribs with his dagger.

The soldier yelped and dropped to his knees before collapsing completely. His companion yelled angrily and lunged forward with his lance. Matthew jumped onto the thin staff of the lance and stood there a moment as the soldier stopped.

He smirked and jumped off, landing behind the soldier and bringing his dagger backwards to hit the man in the back, on a spot near his armpit where he wasn't armored. He dropped his lance, for the thief had hit his good arm as Matthew kicked him in the backs of the knees, knocking him to the ground with an agonizing scream.

Matthew then pushed both his weapon and the other soldier's weapon out of his reach before returning to Arthiel. Her face was blank with shock. "That…that was…incredible!" she exclaimed as Matthew pulled her along. "Where did you learn that?"

"Just a few things I picked up in the trade. Gotta learn how to get around and defend yourself quickly when you're running around stealing things from all sorts of people twice your size," Matthew smirked as they reached the door. He let her hand go and kneeled, taking to the lock.

A few moments, it swung open and both sighed when they saw no enemies inside. They crept inside and confirmed it was indeed empty – save for shiny red boxes with golden lining.

"Hey! Unless my eyes deceive me, that's a chest!" Matthew exclaimed happily. He turned to smile at the orange-haired girl. "Say Arthiel, since we came all this way, what say we help ourselves?"

"No," she said flatly.

"Huh? What do you mean '_no_'?" Matthew asked, frowning. "Don't be such a bore. If you want to win, you've got to use every means at your disposal. That's an ironclad rule!"

"I'm _sure_ it is," Arthiel rolled her eyes, her voice thick with sarcasm. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and stared at him simply. "Matthew, stealing is bad; you've no idea how much trouble you got me into earlier because I ran after you for stealing my money."

"Yeah, but I count the money I stole from you as the pay for you hiring me remember?" Matthew smirked. "And yes, I know stealing's bad. I'm well aware of that. We're saving the Marquess right?"

"Yeah…what does that have to do with—?"

"Let's just call this an advance on our reward, ok?" Matthew interjected, still smirking. He looked at her with his caramel-colored eyes, almost pouting.

"Fine…but don't tell Lyn and the others," Arthiel sighed, shaking her head in shame. Matthew's eyes lit up at her words.

"Huh? You've changed your mind?" he asked, just to make sure. She nodded and he nearly jumped for joy, cheering like a little child. "Hurrah! Treasure time! Treasure time!"

He walked over to the first of the two chests and kneeled down, taking out his picks again. A few moments later, faster than when he had picked the locks on the doors, he whipped open the chest, smiling as he saw the contents.

He pulled out a large vial of blue liquid, his eyes shinning. "Oh hey, this is one of those potions that raise stamina. You know the ones that are good for those of us on the…less robust side. Like me and you for example," he smiled, moving the bottle to make the contents swish around. He tossed it to Arthiel, who caught it deftly.

He turned and began toiling away at the second chest as Arthiel examined the liquid in the bottle. "If we bring this back, the others will know we've been snooping."

"So use it," Matthew stated simply, not looking away from his work. "And leave the bottle here; they'll never know it was us."

"I…I um…," Arthiel stammered, feeling unsure. Matthew stood up, revealing the contents of the second chest to be money and smiled.

"I'm guessing you're not going to be sure about this money either huh?" Matthew asked, smirking. She shook her head slowly and he sighed, pulling a small blue bag from one of the pouches on his belt. He gathered all the money from the chest into it before grabbing the bottle from her.

"Or we could just leave it here…," Arthiel told him as he unscrewed the cap. He paused and looked at her.

"After I worked so hard to open the chests? No way!" Matthew exclaimed, tossing the cap aside. He raised the bottle to his lips and drank half before holding it out to Arthiel. "C'mon Ary, live a little here."

"What did you just call me?" Arthiel asked, slowly taking the bottle from him.

"It's a nickname," Matthew sighed. "Go on; just finish it off so we can get outta here."

"Fine," Arthiel replied, drinking the other half of the bottle, sending a flush of heat and zinging energy through her body straight to her core. She returned the bottle to it's treasure chest and joined Matthew at the doorway.

"So what about the money?" Arthiel inquired as they walked down the hall, carefully avoiding the two soldier's bodies.

"I worked to get it, and you didn't seem to want it, so I'm keeping it," Matthew stated simply.

"Alright…Matty," Arthiel smiled and Matthew stopped dead in his tracks to look at her. She merely smiled and kept walking.

"It's a nickname," she told him. "Hurry up so we can get back to the others."

Hearing nothing behind her, she whirled around and gasped when she saw the empty corridor – well except for the soldiers from earlier. Matthew was gone, along with the money from the chest and quite probably her money as well, since she guess he undoubtedly still had it.

"Curses!" Arthiel muttered angrily, stalking back down the hall to the room where they'd left Sain and Kent before. The man that had been guarding the inside was slumped against a wall, dead and the two knights stood before a large opening in the wall. Everyone else was already there with them.

"There you are Arthiel!" Lyn exclaimed happily after excusing herself from a conversation with Florina, Will, Kent and Sain, having been briefed on their two pathways to their respective triggers.

She motioned to the large doorway, smiling. "Look, it's the hidden passageway! Rath and his men have already gone ahead to clean up everything, we're just waiting for him to return and he'll bring us to see the Marquess."

"All right," Arthiel nodded, now feeling an unsettling feeling since she realized Lunar was still not here.

As if on cue, the nomadic captain of the guard appeared in the doorway and waved them forward. Gathering their things and bringing the horses along, they followed_  
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"Ah, it's Rath! You've done well. What a performance!" a man with blonde hair and a semi-kind look to him exclaimed seeing the large group walk into the throne room.

"Sir…if your have praise, it should be given to this group," Rath explained, motioning to the large group of companions.

"Hm? Who are you?" Marquess Araphen asked as Lyn approached him.

"My name is Lyn, I'm please you're well," Lyn smiled politely.

"Oh…it's you. You're Marquess Caelin's…," the man stopped mid-speech and looked to the captain of his castle guard. "Leave us Rath, I would speak with this girl."

The green-haired man nodded and directed his grey horse from the room. The Marquess half-smiled and turned his gaze back to Lyn.

"Now…Lady Lyndis," he began. "Do you know the identity of those responsible for this uproar?"

"I believe it to be the work of my granduncle, Lundgren," Lyn replied.

"That is exactly right, which means my castle has been damaged in your family's petty inheritance dispute," the Marquess said none-too-kindly.

"My-My apologies…," Lyn stammered.

"When I heard that Lady Madelyn's daughter was in trouble, I thought to lend my assistance…I find I've changed my mind," he announced, earning him many gasps from the crowd before him. "I withdraw my offer."

"What? But….but you can't do that!" Arthiel exclaimed angrily. "That's stupid! Just before you were going to help us and just because your pathetic castle got damaged in ways your sum of money can repair easily, you won't help her? We're in great need of this your lord Marquess, you have no right!"

"And you have no right to speak to me in such a way! Hold your tongue or I shall have you brought to the dungeons and allow you not to leave with them!" Marquess Araphen snapped. Sain shook his head and grabbed Arthiel by the arms, bringing her back a bit.

"Took the words right outta my mouth," Sain whispered in her ear, causing a flicker of a smile to appear on her lips.

"Marquess Araphen! You gave me your word my lord!" Kent protested politely, walking up beside Lyn.

"Your name is Kent, is it not?" the man sitting in the throne asked. When Kent nodded, he frowned. "Earlier you failed to inform me of one most vital detail!"

"What…what do you mean?" Kent inquired, confused.

"This girl does resemble Lady Madelyn but…," Marquess Araphen shook his head. "I didn't expect to see her so tainted with the blood of Sacae."

"_**What?!**_" Lyn blurted out, shocked and dismayed.

"Don't you feel that the Marquess of Caelin would be troubled to meet this…nomadic mongrel?" Marquess Araphen asked Kent, ignoring Lyn's shock completely.

"You—!" Sain began but it was Arthiel's turn to hold him back before he said something to get himself nearly thrown in jail.

"Sain! Hold!" Kent reprimanded his friend. He shook his head and looked at the Marquess. "My apologies my lord Marquess.

"Hm, you man is poorly disciplined as is the girl," the man mused dryly.

"Marquess Araphen!" Kent exclaimed, bringing the attention back to him without being rude. "Please…if you would grace us with your aid…"

"I hear Marquess Caelin is ill and abed. I questions whether he will survive to meet this girl," the Marquess smirked with slight malice. "In which case, his brother Lundgren will claim his title. And I certainly wish to avoid trouble with the coming Marquess."

"You scheming…," this time both Arthiel and Sain began their sentence together but Kent interrupted them.

"Sain! Arthiel!" the red knight scolded.

"I understand," Lyn sighed. "Kent, Sain, Arthiel, we take our leave at once."

"Milady Lyndis! We—" Kent began with shock.

"I am proud of the Sacae blood that runs through my veins," she told him before turning on her heel and grabbing Zephyr's reins as she walked towards the door.

"I will NOT accept aid from one who disparages my heritage," she turned to say just before disappearing through the door.

The Marquess boiled in his seat until all of her group had followed and watched through one of his windows as they tread out of the castle and down the path, being escorted out of the city by a few of his soldiers.

"Bah! Arrogant child!" he fumed, slamming his fist onto the windowsill. "If she had shed but a single tear, I would have granted her request. We Lycian nobles will never understand those prideful savages."

"Are those your feelings towards the nomads of Sacae milord?" a voice inquired from behind him.

"What?" the Marquess whirled around to see Rath standing in the doorway. "Oh Rath! I didn't see you there."

He smiled and took a step towards the Sacaen. "My comments do not reflect on you. You are my captain, I'm proud of your service."

"Of course, as long as we bend our knee to you, you care not where we're from," Rath stated in disgust. "But when an equal comes from my lands? What conceit."

"Rath! How can you speak to me like that?" The Marquess exclaimed, taken aback. "You sound like the idiot green knight and the orange-haired brat! I have treated you well, have I not? I have paid you well. I have treated you better than your kind deserves."

His last sentence struck a chord in Rath's heart and he glared at the blonde-haired man before him. "You will never understand."

He turned and walked off towards the door, leaving the Marquess to call after him. He finally turned around as he reached the door. "My service ends here," Rath explained before walking off to find his things. All he could hear in the throne room behind him was screaming as he headed towards the stables, a smile on his face_  
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Because the soldiers had been there to escort them out, the companions had little time to attempt to get supplies, and thus, were short once again. This brought their mood down, on top of their meeting with the Marquess.

Arthiel was worse off than all of them, because Lunar had not returned and had not turned up as they walked towards the city gates when she called for him. She sat on a boulder as they camped on the outskirts, for it had reached evening and they could not afford to keep going.

"He will show up Arthiel, perhaps not right at the moment but I'm sure you'll either wake up and he'll be here at our camp or shall find us tomorrow on our journey out," Sain attempted to comfort her along with the others once again.

"Thank you Sain, thank you all for trying to cheer me up," Arthiel looked up, smiling at the group. She looked up into the dark red sky and sighed. "But I'm afraid that if he has not shown up yet, it means something is wrong. And since we cannot return to the city, I cannot look for him and…I don't know what to do anymore."

"We can try and…and ask the soldiers to look for him tomorrow, just…t-to allow us in only for that," Florina suggested.

Arthiel shrugged and took a deep breath before looking up at them and wiping a few tears from her eyes, "Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's like Sain said, he'll turn up. But we have more pressing matters on our hands here."

"Like traveling to Caelin!" Serra exclaimed happily. It seemed she was the only one not fazed by this poor mood.

"Yes but…Lyn…," Arthiel said slowly, looking at her friend. "The Marquess Araphen…he said your grandfather was ill."

"That's right!" Lyn gasped, the thought clicking in now. "Oh no! We…We must hurry to Caelin but…"

"Don't worry about me, if all is not lost for me and Lunar, he will followed eventually and find us in Caelin at some time," Arthiel smiled as best she could.

"As we approach Caelin, Lundgren's obstacles will be more difficult to overcome," Kent began, breaking the sad mood. "However, I've vowed to see you through to the end Milady!"

"I'm counting on you Kent," Lyn nodded.

"I'm with you too!" Sain exclaimed, causing many determined vows and promises of the like from the group around him.

"Thank you Sain, thank you all," Lyn smiled at those around her. "It's because of all of you that I…I will persevere! They will never break my spirit!"

"It's nice to hear the old optimistic Lyn has returned!" Arthiel exclaimed and Lyn smiled sympathetically to the girl. Before Arthiel could tell them all to stop worrying about her, galloping quieted them down.

They turned towards the city to see Rath arriving on his grey horse, who was pulling a brown caravan with another horse following behind, although they could barely see the steed.

"Rath! What is it! What are you—" Lyn blurted out worriedly until Rath stopped her.

"I overheard the Marquess talking to himself," Rath began. He dismounted his horse and walked up to Lyn, taking one of her hands and kneeling on the ground before her, bowing after he had kissed her hand. "Lyn of the Lorca...Proud daughter of Sacae, I would join you. I would add my strength to yours."

"Really?" Lyn asked, pink creeping up on her cheeks.

"Yes," Rath nodded as he stood. He held out a little blue pouch to her that Arthiel recognized as the one Matthew had used to gather the money from the chest in. She frowned but kept quiet. "And this, I want you to take it, along with what you see behind me."

"This is…gold?!" Lyn exclaimed after opening the pouch.

"And in the caravan are supplies such as tents, food, feed for the horses and a place for those without horses to travel," Rath explained. He looked at Arthiel. "The horse behind the caravan is also for you, as thanks for leading me to rescue the Marquess."

"It's too much…I can't accept it," Lyn shook her head, trying to give Rath back the pouch of money.

"And a horse? You bought me horse?" Arthiel inquired. "That's insane Rath! I'm fine riding with Lyn or in the caravan with the others!"

"I have no need for it, the money was…from Marquess Araphen as were the supplies, it is what you were supposed to get," Rath explained. "The horse was one of mine…I have no need for any of it now…so if it will help you."

"But…," both girls began but Rath waved them quiet.

"I cannot take back something once offered," Rath told them.

"Rath…I…thank you," Lyn smiled.

"Ditto," Arthiel nodded.

"Well finally, I thought you were never gonna take the darn things," a familiar voice mused as the second horse was directed into view, a young man with sandy hair, caramel eyes and a red cloak draped over his right shoulder sitting upon it. "Ladies, always the difficult ones aren't we?"

"You!" Arthiel exclaimed, anger flashing across her face as Matthew dismounted the horse. He smirked and walked closer. She looked at Rath. "What is he doing here?"

"He told me you had hired him and had left him there, so I offered to bring him here," Rath shrugged. "And he told me you knew about the money…"

"Oh he told you that did he?" Arthiel asked, turning to look at Matthew with such anger, it made him wince slightly. "Well did he also tell you that the money is a mixture of my own and money he stole from one of the castle's chests? Did he tell you that he also caused me to lose my closest companion, my wolf guardian Lunar? And did he tell you that the only reason he was with us earlier was because he owed me, something he seemed to forget about once we discovered the passageway when he took off?"

"No…," Rath mumbled, looking at Lyn with worry but the other Sacaen merely shrugged.

"Yeah I figured he might not bring me here if I told him all that," Matthew smirked, standing a few feet in front of her – something he guessed to be a safe distance. "But hey, you got your stuff back! I mean, the money I took from you is in the pouch, and I gave the reward money we were talking about to a member of the castle guard – that's gotta count for something doesn't it?"

It was a few moments as Arthiel took in his words before she spoke – and oh how it was not calmly. "You are unbelievable! Completely unbelievable! Did you come back here just to make this a living hell for me?!"

"Now since when do I make your life a livin' hell Ary?" Matthew inquired, earning himself many questioning looks at the use of the nickname. "I thought we had fun earlier in town!"

"You mean when you stole my money? Or when you got me into trouble? Or how about when you separated me from Lunar? What exact part of today was fun?!" Arthiel shouted, getting angrier and angrier as Matthew pushed all the right buttons.

"Ummm…all of the above really," Matthew mused. "But the best was probably saving your butt from those mercenaries!"

Arthiel clenched her fists and just stood there, eyes narrowed, not saying a word.

"This does not look good, not one bit," Sain whispered to Serra.

"I don't know, I think Matthew can get out of this one Sain," Serra replied. _Knowing him and his way to weasel out of just about anything, he'll make it. Then again, maybe he's finally met his match with Arthiel. Maybe he's finally bitten off more then he can chew. Ooooh…won't this be interesting!_

Arthiel was still quiet and Matthew took this opportunity to walk up to her. He placed his hands on her shoulders all while smiling. What seemed like the start to an act of kindness was ruined when he spoke.

"C'mon Ary, don't be mad," Matthew smirked. "I gave your money back! All that I stole, it's in the pouch with the stuff from the castle!"

Arthiel's eyes widened with shock, then they narrowed as anger boiled within her and were this a cartoon, smoke would have shot from her ears. She pulled out of his grasp with one swift flip of her shoulder and glared at the ground.

"You think this is about _**money**_?! You think I'm mad because you hadn't returned my money, when everyone else here had a share of their own?! Money has nothing to do with why I'm furious you jerk!" Arthiel snapped, making Matthew cringe.

By the time she looked up at him, her eyes were filled with tears begging to fall. But she refused to cry, not in front of him. "You…you made me leave…l-leave him behind…"

"Ah, the wolf," Matthew breathed, taking a step closer as his face reflected apologies. He had been pushing the girl to her limits, sure, but he had never intended to make her cry. That was just cruel. When he touched her shoulder lightly, she shrugged it off coldly.

"No…leave me alone Matthew, you've done enough. I don't need your pity," Arthiel choked through the tears that were now spilling down her cheeks. "That wolf was the last solid piece of me memories that has not been blocked off, and you forced me to leave him there! Now, I don't know where he is, if he's hurt or safe or dead and how I can find him! If you had just let me—"

"Stop," Matthew held up a hand to end her crying rant. When he spoke now, his voice was much softer than it had been when he was teasing her. "Look I…I was pushing your buttons and tryin' to make you mad…not hurt you like this, I…I…"

_Oh for the love of God Matthew, coherent sentences you idiot!_ He scolded himself mentally. He sighed and whistled, making something move from the brown caravan behind them. Matthew tapped her shoulder and when she looked up at him with teary eyes, he motioned towards the caravan.

Lunar jumped out, limping slightly at the rough cast around his right hind leg and the bandage around his middle. He slowly made his way over.

Arthiel's face lit up and he ran to her. She fell to her knees as he reached her and she hugged him, being careful not to hurt him. More tears spilled down her face as she ruffled his fur and hugged him more. He licked the salty fluids from her face happily.

She looked up at the others with a bright and smiling face before her gaze locked with Matthew's and it became both grateful and apologetic. She stood up and walked over to him, Lunar at her side.

"You found him for me," Arthiel sniffled happily. Matthew rubbed the back of his neck nervously and chuckled slightly.

"No I…when I was just getting some supplies to add to the caravan there 'cuz I knew Rath was headed here…your wolf just…uh found me," Matthew explained, obviously lying through his teeth. "So I figured I'd let him tag along that way the girl who orders us around in battle wouldn't hate me enough to send me off to my death."

"Okay," Arthiel smiled playfully. "You _sure_ that's what happened?"

"No it's not!" Matthew said hurriedly, mentally kicking himself. _You and your big mouth…you're turning into that damned Serra,_ he thought dryly, sighing.

"I…I saw how it affected you to not have your little furry friend around and, it was fault you lost him but…you were being so nice to me during the battle. So I…when I left, I didn't run away from the fight, I went to go find him," Matthew explained, still kicking himself in his mind. "And when I did, I saw how badly hurt he was so I patched him up. Then we found Rath here on the road and I asked if we could tag along."

Arthiel smiled and leaned up, kissing Matthew on the cheek. "Thank you, you're not a jerk after all," she told him before turning back to Lunar and slipping into a playful mood with him. The wolf looked like he wanted to play, but his injuries kept him from doing so, which confused Arthiel, seeing as how he had healed himself earlier.

Serra worked her magic on him and then let the two go off to throw a stick around, something Florina, Will and Lyn joined in seeing how much energy the two had. Everyone else set up camp.

Matthew sat in the grass near the caravan, leaning up against the horse Rath had brought for Arthiel. He was so lost in thought that for once, he didn't notice someone come up beside him.

"What you did was really nice Matthew," Serra's voice brought him back to reality and he opened his eyes to see the pink-haired girl seated beside him, also leaning on the horse.

"What do you want Serra?" Matthew sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Just being curious," Serra smiled. "Looks to me like you've finally met your match."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Matthew asked with annoyance although his face reflected shock.

"You know very well what it means," Serra smiled.

"And you know very well that your thoughts are wrong, because I have _her_," Matthew spat dryly, making Serra giggle.

"But Matthew, you don't even know where L—" Serra began.

"Shut it!" Matthew snapped, covering her mouth with his hand. He let go once he was sure she'd be quiet and listen. "One – we're supposed to act like we don't know each other, let alone work for the same man. Two – you're supposed to keep your big mouth shut about me around them, alright? On orders of Lord Uther."

"But…," she began and he shot her an icy glare. She whispered the next words, making sure no one was around to hear them. "You and Uther are complete party poopers you know?"

She stood up and stalked off towards the fire where she joined those that were watching Arthiel, Will, Lyn and Florina play with the revitalized Lunar. Matthew watched the tactician a moment before shaking his head and closing his eyes again**  
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**Lannie:** This was by far my favorite chapter, with all the argument/friendly scenes between Arthiel and Matthew. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it; so far it's my biggest chapter. I can't wait to finish the next one though, because we'll be meeting a certain pair of blue-haired siblings. R&R!!

P.S. The nickname used for Arthiel, "Ary", was not given by me, but by **LadyDragonStarr**, so thanks!!! 


	9. Chapter 8: Siblings Abroad

_**Lannie:**__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

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_**Chapter Eight: Siblings Abroad**_

"Please! Somebody…somebody please help!" a young boy who looked to be about thirteen years of age burst into the inn, looking worried. The innkeeper spotted him and his eyes widened.

"That's enough! Get out now! I want none of your trouble!" the man shouted, shooing the young boy out the door.

"But sit…why? You were so kind yesterday…," the boy pleaded as he was pushed out the door.

"I thought you were just two kids, a couple of traveling performers…if those men are chasing you, you must be up to no good! Now, get out! You're a plague on decent folk!" the man snapped, slamming the door behind him. He wiped the sweat from his brow and walked back over to the front desk to resume his things.

"Phew, what a mess," he sighed. From the lounge, a lean man regarded him with bright blue eyes, looking puzzled.

"Hmm…," he uttered, thinking to himself.

Meanwhile, the boy stumbled from the inn, walking slowly as his thoughts raced frantically. Voices flowed to his mind and hope lit up in his eyes.

"Where are we Kent?" a woman with green hair asked the red knight riding to her right.

"This is Kathelet, if we head due south, we'll pass into Caelin," he replied.

"From here, I'd say we're about ten days' ride to Castle Caelin. Assuming we don't run into any delays of course," the green knight on the woman's left added.

"Don't jinx us Sain," another girl laughed, this one with orange hair, also rode with them. The young boy noticed another girl on a Pegasus a few paces behind, looking a little shy as she looked at the green-hair man that sat on his large grey horse, pulling a brown caravan behind him.

The young boy saw this as his chance and darted towards them. He had not noticed a black wolf that had been roaming near the orange-haired girl and he tripped over it, plummeting to the ground.

"Oh!" Arthiel exclaimed, dismounting her new horse and running over to help the boy up. He looked up at her, his aqua-colored hair falling into his red eyes. "Are you alright kid?"

"Yes…yes, I'm fine thank you," he stuttered nervously, his voice cracking slightly, telling Arthiel he'd obviously been crying to some degree.

He wore a dark green sleeveless over a white t-shirt and loose green shorts. The sleeveless fell to his thighs and had yellow lining as well as a blue belt strapped around his waist, a thin maroon scabbard hanging from it that did not look like it carried a dagger. He had pale blue boots that went up to his knees, dark green socks sticking out at the tops, a long yellow scarf wrapped around his neck and blue open-fingered gloves on each arm, each sported a golden band at the wrists.

"You good Lunar?" Arthiel inquired, looking over her shoulder at the black wolf, who was licking one of his paws. His ears perked up at his master's call and he barked happily, resuming his cleaning. "He's good."

"Pardon me but…," the boy began, tugging on Arthiel's cloak.

"Yes? Can I help you?" Arthiel inquired.

"You and your friends…are you mercenaries?" he asked a little shyly. Arthiel glanced behind her at Lyn.

"And if we are?" the orange-haired girl asked, looking back to the young boy.

"My name is Nils, and I am in urgent need of your help!" he cried.

"Arthiel, we mustn't let our guard down," Kent warned. "Not even for a child."

"I'm very aware of that Kent," Arthiel smiled, still looking at the boy. "Forgive me but we're in a hurry. Is there someone else you can ask?"

She turned away and began walking away towards her horse but Nils grabbed a hold of her arm beneath her cloak and held it firmly, staring up at her as tears rimmed his red eyes. Something struck a chord in her mind and heart.

_**A wrinkled hand poked out of a black cloak, a ball of black magic in the palm. In its depths appeared an image of a young woman and a teenage boy, both with aqua blue hair and red eyes.**_

_What in the world was that?_ Arthiel asked herself in the safety of her mind as the image vanished. She looked at the young boy again. _Who is he?_

"There's no time to find someone else! Ninian's been…it's my sister! Some men have taken her away!" Nils begged.

"Your sister? Did you say your sister's been accosted?" Sain asked, bringing his horse closer as delight flashed across his face.

"Sain…," Kent sighed.

"That's right! She was taken away by some cruel awful men. I don't know what I'll do without Ninian," Nils explained.

"Lady Arthiel! Milady Lyndis! We must help him!" Sain declared.

"Nonsense!" Kent replied stubbornly. "We haven't the time! If the Marquess is as ill as we've heard, we must proceed!"

"But Kent…the boy is a mess and worried sick about his sister. I feel the need to help him, please," Arthiel pleaded. _C'mon Kent, you know what it's like to lose your sister…please listen…_

"Kent I…I want to help this child," Lyn agreed.

"Milady?" Kent frowned, wondering why they were all slowly agreeing to help the boy.

"I'm worried about my grandfather, of course, but this!" Lyn exclaimed. "I cannot stand by and let a child be taken from her home!"

"I see…I know what you mean…," Kent nodded. _And I will not let this become another case like my sister! This will have his sibling returned!_

"We must do as our hearts dictate Milady, and that is to help the boy. I am by your service, your loyal retainer, so I shall follow you wherever that may lead," Kent finally agreed.

"Thank you," Lyn nodded.

"Hah! Such a noble speech! Ever the true knight that one!" Sain exclaimed happily before looking at Nils. "Ah well, you're in luck laddie! Let's go get your sister!"

"I'll go tell the others!" Arthiel declared, running off towards the caravan and leaving her horse there. This caused Florina and Rath to give her questioning looks and she stopped to explain it to them quickly.

She ran to the back of the caravan and whipped open the back flap with such force and speed that it caught everyone inside off-guard. Matthew fell from the stack of boxes he had been lying on as he shoved something in his pocket, Will nearly let go of the arrow her had been stringing in his bow, Serra squealed noisily and Erk snapped his book shut. Dorcas seemed to be the only one who had not been alarmed as he sat on his bench and chuckled with amusement.

"Ow! Dear lord Ary, you couldn't give us fair warning?" Matthew grumbled, rubbing his backside as he got up. He muttered a few curse words against the pain to which Serra whacked him lightly with her staff.

"Sorry Matty," Arthiel giggled. "Slight change of plans you guys, we're going to help a young boy save his sister from mercenaries."

"Oh the poor thing!" Serra breathed.

"This means we'll be taking a slight detour from our course, just thought I'd warn you and I'll alert you if there's trouble," Arthiel added.

"Thank you Arthiel," Will smiled. She nodded and let go of the flaps, running back to the others.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk Matthew," Serra giggled, making Matthew stare at her oddly. Erk, Will and Dorcas resumed whatever they'd been doing, ignoring the two.

"What do you want now Serra?" Matthew sat beside her.

"You're hiding something of hers," Serra whispered, indicating to his pocket where he'd shoved something earlier after his fall.

"Don't know what you're talking about big-mouth," he smirked.

"Oh really? So you wouldn't have any idea about the reason it's intriguing to me that you allow her to use that nickname for you when someone else already does, correct?" Serra continued. His eyes narrowed into an icy glare and he got to his feet.

"None at all," he said flatly before turning away and climbing back up his stack of boxes. He lay down and turned his back to the cleric, resuming whatever he'd been doing earlier before Arthiel's interruption.

"Thought so," Serra giggled quietly, causing Erk to shoot her a questioning glance. She merely smiled innocently_  
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"They've been warned?" Lyn asked as Arthiel returned to the group. When she nodded, Lyn smiled. "Thank you."

"No problem," Arthiel returned the smile. She turned to look at Nils. "So will you lead us to the men who've done this?"

"Yes," Nils nodded. "They're really tough though, so be careful."

"Leave them to us. We're pretty tough ourselves, right Arthiel?" Lyn asked, smiling at her tactician.

"You better believe it kid," Arthiel giggled, patting the boy on the head. Nils' smile faded when he spotted two masked men streaking across the field towards the group.

"Ah! Oh no!" he exclaimed as they came up.

"What is it?" Arthiel asked, turning to follow Nils' gaze to face two men dressed in layers of black clothing, the lower half of their faces covered by a black brace.

"Hehehehe…found him!" the larger of the two laughed. "C'mon, it's back to Nergal with you."

Arthiel's eyes widened as another chord of familiarity struck within her. _That name…_

_**A young girl cowered and shivered behind a table full of maps and learning materials, a man lay dead a few feet away. A man cloaked entirely in black robes with intricate yellow lining approached her, half his face wrapped in a black cloth. The single candle in the light flickered dangerously, threatening to be snuffed out.**_

"_**W-what…happened…where are…?" the young girl managed to squeak out, her voice scared.**_

"_**The monsters have gone my dear," he said slowly. "You're safe with me. I am Nergal."**_

Arthiel shook the thoughts from her head, frowning. _What in the world was that…just like earlier…what's going on?_

"No! Let Ninian go!" Nils yelled at the man, who was slowly approaching him.

"We ain't supposed to kill you, but that doesn't mean we can't rough you up," the man sneered. Arthiel had heard enough as she grabbed Nils out of his reach and placed him behind her protectively. Lyn dismounted and joined her side, brandishing her sword.

"Who do you think you are?" the man barked.

"Lyn!" Nils began worriedly but Arthiel turned to him and hugged him, telling him to be calm and quiet and let them handle this. He buried his head in her cloak slightly and although surprised at first, Arthiel let him be.

"Let the boy's sister go," Lyn ordered and the man laughed.

"Ah, so you want to help the kid huh? What a shame," the man shook his head. "You're gonna die for something that don't concern you."

"You think so do you? Do we look se meek to you?" Lyn scoffed. "I think you're in for a terrible shock!"

"Stupid girl, you'll regret those words! You're facing the Black Fang you imbecile!" the man snapped. "Take 'em down boys!"

The companions watched as many men garbed in similar black clothing surfaced from the trees and small hills around them, all seeming to protect the fortress in the distance. Small houses were dotted here and there as well as a village to the north.

Florina and Rath called to the others, who emerged from the caravan just as the two men nearest the companions lunged forward. Lyn sidestepped the first man, driving her blade into his side as he did. He howled in pain and crumpled to the ground.

Meanwhile, the second sprung at Arthiel and Nils only to be by a flurry of arrows. He too soon met the ground – dead. Arthiel and Nils looked right and smiled as Rath and Will were side-by-side, bows in hand after having fired the arrows.

On Arthiel's orders, Kent, Sain and Rath galloped on horseback to cover the three mercenaries and the two archers down the path a bit. Florina hung back a moment as Erk and Dorcas took care of the northern archers. Will, Serra and Matthew stuck with her, Lyn, Nils and Arthiel for the moment.

Suddenly Erk yelped in pain as a black aura closed in around him and he fell to his knees, clutching his abdomen. Serra squeaked worriedly and ran to his side, staff in hand to heal him. This however, took more power than she expected.

She exhaled deeply, wiping a bit of sweat from her brow as Erk got to his feet and thanked her, picking up his book.

"What is it you two, what's wrong?" Lyn asked worriedly.

"Nothing much, it's just, there's a Shaman out there," Erk motioned to the northern path where the Archers had just been. A small cloaked in black and red stood there, shielded slightly by a tree. "Anima Magic is useless against Dark Magic, I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize Erk, I sent you there without paying complete attention to the fact that there was a Shaman amongst the Archers," Arthiel waved it off. "I've heard about them during my training. Practitioners of the dark arts are fearsome foes. We'll have to be careful…"

She trailed off as a lean and feminine-looking man approached the group slowly, a bright red book in his hand. His robes were slimming and sky blue, with an off-white rope tied around his waist and a stunning white cape fastened around his neck with a blue broach. He had long blonde hair that fell straight to his waist and brilliant blue eyes.

"Who are you?" Arthiel asked as calmly as possible despite Lunar growling. The man noticed the wolf and smiled at the rest of them. She looked at her wolf sternly and Lunar quieted down.

"Please forgive me, I never meant to startle you," he apologized.

"Your robes…they look like religious attire," Serra exclaimed brightly. "Are you an Elimine bishop?!"

"Yes…well no. I'm only an acolyte," he smiled, "an Elimine Monk to be specific. My name's Lucius."

"Do you have business with us Lucius?" Lyn inquired.

"I was at the inn when this child came seeking help. The innkeeper was afraid to get involved," Lucius explained. "He was…unpleasant."

"I wasn't afraid of him! I'm used to being treated that way!" Nils exclaimed.

"That's awful…," Arthiel said sadly, looking down at the boy.

"May I please lend you my services? I truly wish to help the boy, if only a little," Lucius offered.

"Of course," Lyn nodded.

"Thank you very much," the monk smiled, bowing slightly. "The blessings of St. Elimine be upon you."

"Aha! Just what we need, a monk!" Arthiel exclaimed, the thought clicking in her head. "Monks practice magic in the ways of light do they not?"

"Yes, we do," Lucius nodded.

"Good, because we're having a bit of a problem with a Shaman," Arthiel explained, pointing to the tree line where the Shaman had edged closer, almost bringing them into the range of his magic now.

"I can take care of this," Lucius smiled, walking past them into the field a few feet away. He opened his book and uttered prayers similar to the ones Serra spoke when she healed people.

A ball of white light formed in front of him and sped towards the Shaman, who created a wall of black magic to shield himself. Lucius winced in concentration as he urged his magic onwards against the enemy's wall. The shield slowly diminished and the ball of light hit the man, knocking him to the ground before coverin him entirely, causing him to vanish.

"Phew…," Lucius smiled, wiping a bit of sweat from his brow. "Haven't used my magic for fighting in a while.

"I can help too!" Nils suddenly exclaimed, tugging on Arthiel's cloak.

"Nils! Can you fight?" Arthiel asked with shock.

"No…but I'm a bard, and bards are useful to have around!" Nils replied happily.

"A bard? Do you mean you're a minstrel? This is no place for a ballad or a saltarello," Lyn pointed out.

"No wait Lyn…I remember something from my training concerning music-playing allies and dancers…," Arthiel frowned, trying to pinpoint exactly what it was.

"C'mon, trust me! I'm all yours Arthiel!" Nils jumped with energy, ready to help. Arthiel nodded and asked him to play for Lucius, for the monk was looking a little worn from forcing his light magic against the darkness after not using it in battle for so long.

Nils smiled and took his flute from a holster attached to his belt, finally answering Arthiel's silent question about what he carried in it. He put the flute to his mouth and began playing a melodious tune, dancing around Lucius happily. Soon the monk smiled as he stretched his limbs, feeling refreshed as Nils ended his small song.

"Cool…," Matthew and Erk breathed in awe as Serra giggled.

"That was lovely," Lyn commented.

"Invigorating even," Arthiel added.

"You ought to play for me sometime, I could use the boost!" Lyn exclaimed.

"Everyone could! My music can refresh you all when the battle tires you!" Nils explained with joy. Just then, the two knights and the nomad returned, looking a little roughed up but otherwise alright.

"Alright, the mercenaries and archers are out of the way," Kent explained as they came up. "All that is left is a Shaman to the east of fortress and a few brigands that have split up, two heading north to the village and two heading southeast towards the small houses."

"And don't forget the head-honcho Shaman guarding the fortress," Sain added.

"I believe I also spotted a group of mercenaries to the south amongst the hills, hiding," Rath finished.

"Thank you," Arthiel smiled. "Serra, patch them up please, and Nils, play some music in the meantime, they look like they would use it."

"What good it music going to—?" Sain stopped when Nils began playing and he felt new energy coursing through his body. "That feels wonderful."

Once Serra and Nils were done their work, Arthiel thought out their plan to reach the fortress. "Sain, Kent and Rath, if you could do me the favor of taking care of the mercenaries to the south, bring Dorcas with you. Florina, fly north and see that the bandits do not reach the village, take Lunar with you please, he hasn't had some good fun in a few days," Arthiel began and all those named nodded, grouping up and going off. "Lyn and Will, go with Lucius to dispatch the remaining Shaman but don't attempt the leading Shaman at the fortress unless you feel you're ready."

They three nodded and shuffled off. Arthiel turned to Erk, Serra, Nils and Matthew. "We're going to take care of the bandits to the southeast and protect those houses."

They ran off and once they reached the opportune spot between the group of houses and the bandits, they stopped. Erk took up a defensive position and began throwing fireballs at them from afar as Serra watched for counterattacks and Nils played him music if he needed it.

"It seems we're good for the time being Matthew," Arthiel smiled. "Would you investigate the houses for me? Make sure everyone is alright if there are any people living there."

"Sure," Matthew nodded before streaking off towards the first house, for it looked to be the most stable and livable. He opened the door and peered into the dimly lit house. He scanned the room with his eyes and gasped when they came across a man with deep blue hair that stood by the window, gazing out at the battle going on.

The man wore a blue shirt that matched his hair and dark brown pants beneath a thick breastplate, gauntlets, shoulder-armor, armor plates strapped around his waist and thick armored boots all of a dark blue shade with golden lining. A long red cape hung on his shoulders and flowed to his ankles and a large silver axe stood upright against the wall beside him.

"Huh? Milord Hector! What brings you here?" Matthew asked in confusion, closing the door behind him. The man looked at him with amused blue eyes.

"Ah, Matthew," he smiled. "Eliwood and I are here for our monthly bout."

"You're still testing one another's fighting prowess eh?" Matthew asked, chuckling to himself. "It's a solid friendship you two share that you practice so faithfully."

"If you don't sharpen your blade, you lose your edge," Hector explained. "So tell me, what are you doing here?"

"Milord Uther was curious about the succession issue here," Matthew told him.

"Oh, the long-lost granddaughter thing?" Hector inquired as Matthew walked up to the window he stood beside.

"Correct," the thief nodded. He pointed out the window at three figures that ran across the fields towards a Shaman – one woman and two men. "See the one with the long green hair out there? That's her. Lady Lyndis."

"Hmm, interesting," Hector mused. He moved from the window to lean against the wall beside his weapon. "So which way does my brother lean?"

"By the assessment, he will back the granddaughter's claim. The Marquess' brother, Lundgren, is too ambitious by far," Matthew replied. "Left alone, we might wake to find him at Ostia's door before too long."

"Sound advice I think," Hector nodded.

"My return to Ostia is going to be delayed a bit," Matthew continued, chancing a glance out the window to make sure everything was still alright. Seeing they were, he turned back to Hector. "Would you mind letting Lord Uther know?"

"What? So the Marquess' brother is now your personal messenger?" Hector asked, slightly angry.

"You always did have a good sense of humor milord," Matthew smirked, turning towards the door. "Don't forget my message!"

"Wait Matthew!" Hector called after him, stopping the thief feet from the door despite the humorous anger that coursed through him. "Why are you delayed?'

"Well because we're helping some child retrieve his sister first, and then we'll be heading to Caelin for Lyn to meet her grandfather and Arthiel has…hired me to accompany them," Matthew explained.

"You sound like you're doing this for fun not because you were hired by this…uh Arthiel?" Hector mused, smiling.

"The orange-haired tactician there, she's usually got a wolf by her side but he's off chasing bandits right about now," Matthew nodded, pointing out the window once more. "A touch cookie that one, I owe her stealing her money and for getting her into trouble a bandit that stole something of hers. Oh and there was the short time where she and Lunar, the wolf, were separated…that was my fault too."

"What's this? Matthew's actually paying his dues to someone he owes?" Hector chuckled. "You haven't just run off yet?"

"Milord! That's a hefty accusation! Now why would I go and do that?" Matthew smirked. "I'm simply using this as an excuse to keep watch for Lord Uther."

"Are you sure about that Matthew?" Hector inquired, smiling.

Matthew merely smirked again and pulling something from his pocket, letting it hang from his hand. It was a long blue ribbon made of silk-like material that had a round bell made tied to each end.

"The bandit had stolen this from her, it's the last thing I owed her that has not been returned as of yet," Matthew smiled mischievously, remembering the look on the large bandit's face when he arrived at the market only to find out that the prize had been stole right out of his pocket.

"She still thinks it's lost, so I keep this to have a reason to stick around and keep an eye on…their progress," Matthew smirked again, covering up whatever he had been about to say.

"Alright Matthew, that's who…I mean "what" you're keeping an eye on," Hector mirrored the other man's smirk knowingly.

"Why would you think otherwise milord? Shame, you know me better!" Matthew laughed; acting like what Hector was implying did not faze him at all. His laughter stopped when he heard Arthiel calling him from outside, telling him to hurry up.

"Well that's my cue, better go make sure she doesn't hurt herself now," Matthew rolled his eyes although the corners of his mouth curved up slightly. Hector eyed him questioningly, a smile dancing across his lips. Matthew saw this and raised his hands defensively before him. "She's the tactician! Their battle progress is much more difficult without her! Her wolf is elsewhere, so I'm keeping watch that she doesn't get hurt!"

"You do that," Hector chuckled. Matthew nodded politely and waved before darting out, leaving Hector there to smile as he watched out the window slightly.

"Stubborn thief he is…," the man chuckled. He then frowned and looked around the field. "Now, where in the blazes is Eliwood?"

"God that took you long enough! You've missed nearly the whole fight!" Arthiel scolded as Matthew exited the house a few feet away from her.

"Gee, what a shame!" Matthew laughed.

"Alright, let's go you," Arthiel smiled, turning to walk off towards where Erk, Nils and Serra were waiting. She froze as a man in thick black robes materialized before her through a cloud of darkness.

He grabbed her and whirled her around to face away from him as he held one hand around her stomach, holding her arms there, and another around her neck, his hands glowing with Dark Magic.

"Well, I was aiming for the boy, but you'll do fine," the Shaman cackled. Arthiel fidgeted, trying to get out of his grasp and she gasped as he tightening his grip on her.

"Arthiel!" Matthew exclaimed worriedly, muttering curses under his breath. He circled the man, hand on his dagger until he joined Serra, Erk and Nils.

"Arthiel?" the Shaman frowned, looking down at her as she glared upwards at him. His eyes widened. "You…why are you…what are you doing here?"

"What do you mean? Who are you?" Arthiel asked, puzzled.

"Heintz the Shaman…you don't recognize me?" he inquired, confused by her odd behavior.

"I've never seen you in my life," Arthiel snapped, trying to wriggle free. She spotted Lucius, Lyn and Will returning from their path nearby and decided to stall. "What do you want with me?"

"Nothing, as I said, I was aiming for the boy," Heintz replied before a mischievous grin danced across his face. "Although…I've thought of something better. The master will be much more pleased if I bring you unexpectedly rather than this brat. The others can take care of him."

"Let her go!" Matthew warned, brandishing his sharp dagger and positioning himself to throw at a dangerous speed.

"Now why would I want to do that? We've only just been reunited, and now she must reunite with someone else," Heintz laughed. Darkness crept up from his feet and wrapped around the two of them. Arthiel's eyes widened in fear as a smell of sulfur invaded her nostrils and she shivered against the sudden cold the Dark Magic brought up as her head began to spin.

Suddenly the man yelled and let go of her, dropped to his knees from a flash of white from behind. Arthiel stumbled forward and Matthew caught her before her weak knees collapsed beneath her. Her whole lower half was freezing (for that's how far up the portal of Darkness had gotten) and Matthew wrapped his cloak around them both as best he could as well as bringing her own cloak closer to her. Serra, Erk and Will came closer as Lyn and Nils rushed over.

Arthiel's head spun at the moment but she gathered from the bits she heard that Lucius finished off the mysterious man, the rest of the company arrived along with Rath who had retrieved the caravan as well as her and Lyn's horses.

"Can you stand?" Lyn's quiet and worried voice asked as her mind cleared finally.

"Y-Yes…I think so..," Arthiel nodded and with both Lyn and Matthew's help, she stood up. She was a bit wobbly, but she recovered quickly. Matthew backed off a little and Serra shot him a smile. They regrouped and headed inside the fortress, not wanting to waste anymore time.

"Ninian! Ninian…," Nils shouted again and again, but no answer came. He looked back at Arthiel, who was nearest him as tears began to form in his eyes. "She's not here…why? Where could s-she be?"

Arthiel offered her arms to the boy and he hugged, flooding her cloak with tears. "Shh…it's okay Nils, I'm sure we'll find her."

"You're good with kids eh?" Matthew whispered as Lyn and a few others looked around the room. It only contained a small table, an armchair and a couch – nothing more.

"Not usually, just him. He seems different…he seems far away from home and I…," Arthiel trailed off, lost in thoughts of what she had seen earlier at the beginning of the fight.

"Sympathize?" Matthew inquired, trying to finish her sentence. He knew he had hit a sore spot of tread onto grounds he shouldn't when she turned away.

"Never mind…," she breathed.

"Milady Lyndis!" A villager spotted a group of men riding south!" Kent exclaimed as he returned from scouting around. The other companions had already moved off down the hall to find themselves rooms.

"The boy's sister…they must have her!" Matthew pointed out.

"Come! We must give chase!" Lyn exclaimed. Nils' head shot up and he looked at her.

"But…but…we won't make it! What if they're already…," he trailed off.

"It's okay Nils, I'm sure we'll get to her before any harm comes to her," Arthiel reassured him.

"Are you looking for this girl here?" a voice interrupted their silence. Nils, Arthiel, Matthew, Kent and Lyn turned to see a young man with slightly messy and spiky red hair walk up, a girl in his arms.

His piecing blue eyes were brought out thanks to his bright red hair and the golden band around his forehead. His clothes were of noble attire, his blue long-sleeve, buttoned-up jacket falling to his thighs as it covered a black undershirt, both of which were adorned with golden lining. He wore white pants that were tucked into pale blue boots that tied up with gold rope. His teal-colored shoulder-armor had a long, ankle-length blue cape fastened to it that had a red underside. Finally, attached to his brown belt was a rapier, sheathed in its brown scabbard.

Nils took one look at the girl in his arms and his face lit up. She wore a long, sleeveless pale aqua dress that hugged her tightly and fell to her knees with a darker teal-colored piece sticking out beneath it. Around each arm were matching teal-colored open-fingered gloves that matched Nils', complete with the golden bands around her wrists, and another around her neck. She had a thin, translucent white cloak as well as a matching ribbon that coiled loosely around her arms. Her faded aqua hair matches Nils' and fell to her waist is layers of straight stands.

"Ninian! Ninian!" Nils exclaimed happily, seeing his sister. Everyone else looked questioningly at the young man who held her, save Matthew, who merely smirked.

"She'll be fine; she's just lost consciousness," the redhead explained.

"Who are you?" Lyn inquired.

"I'm Eliwood, of Pherae; my father is the Marquess," he replied as Nils and Arthiel carefully took Ninian from his grasp and sat the unconscious girl in the armchair.

"The Marquess' son…," Lyn breathed.

"She was with a band of ruffians and seemed quite upset. She looked in need of rescuing…," Eliwood continued, looking over at the aqua-haired girl. He returned his gaze to the companions. "Was I wrong to involve myself?"

"No way! You've saved her life in doing so! Thank you," Arthiel smiled. "I'm Arthiel; this is Lyn, Kent and Matthew."

"Nice to meet you all," Eliwood returned the smile as his eyes scanned them; his gaze did not falter as the thief smirked and winked in recognition.

"I'm from Sacae…I'm Marquess Caelin's granddaughter," Lyn told him, holding out a hand, which he shook respectfully.

"Marquess Caelin?" Eliwood looked shocked and Arthiel figured this was a good time to leave the two alone. She went to tell Nils, but he was too busy at Ninian's side to notice. She shrugged and ushered the two other men from the room.

Lyn recounted the events that had led her to discover her heritage and those that brought her company hear and Eliwood listened intently, asking questions wherever he could.

"And that's my story," Lyn exhaled deeply. "It's not an easy tale to believe, I know…"

"No, I do believe you," Eliwood smiled. Lyn gave him a shocked glance, causing him to chuckle. "At first glance, all I saw was a daughter of the plains folk…now I can see it though. You have your grandfather's eyes."

"You know my grandfather?" Lyn asked.

"The Marquess, Lord Hausen, is my father's good friend," Eliwood replied. "I also know that the proud people of Sacae tell not lies. It's true isn't it?"

"Yes…thank you," Lyn nodded. "I would not have expected any Lycian noble to be so courteous to Sacaen nomad."

"You seemed to be in trouble," Eliwood commented. "May I be of assistance?"

"Thank you for your kind offer, this is my problem though, and I'll deal with it," Ly explained.

"I see," Eliwood nodded, standing up. "Well, I'll be in the area for a few days longer, if you need anything, please let me know."

"Eliwood," Lyn joined him, getting up, "thank you."

She walked him to the entrance of the fortress, where his white horse was waiting. "Goodbye Lord Eliwood," she bowed her head slightly.

"Goodbye Lady Lyndis," he returned the gesture before walking off. He stopped just before the doorway and glanced over his shoulder. "Oh, and Lyn? I'm on your side, keep that in mind."

"I will," Lyn nodded, smiling. "Thank you."

She turned back and walked inside as Eliwood walked towards his horse. As he reached him, he jumped slightly when he noticed a young man with sand-colored hair leaning against the wall beside it.

"Lord Eliwood," Matthew bowed slightly as he chewed on a toothpick – lord knows where he'd gotten that.

"Hello Matthew," Eliwood smiled, pulling himself up onto his horse and looking down at the thief. "What brings you here with this group?"

"Lord Uther's orders, just making assessments of the situation for him," Matthew replied quietly, not wanting any of the others hear him, for he knew there were rooms near that some might've taken.

"Interesting," Eliwood mused. "Having fun?"

"It has its perks," Matthew smirked. "Such as annoying the tactician and constantly telling Serra to keep her big mouth shut."

Eliwood chuckled at this. "So, I'll be on my way now…"

"To meet Lord Hector I presume?" Matthew inquired and at first, Eliwood looked shocked but then he nodded, smiling. "Met him when Arthiel sent me to investigate the houses in the southeast during battle. Horribly impatient for your return milord."

"Well, best not to keep him waiting any longer," Eliwood nodded politely as thanks before riding off. Matthew walked back inside only to jumped as he nearly collided with Arthiel, who was by the looks of it, heading to deliver blankets and food to the siblings in the other room.

"Geez Ary, did you need to startle the living daylights outta me?" Matthew scolded playfully, relieving her of half the weight by taking a few things.

"I thought you didn't get startled Matty, I thought you were that great of a sneak," Arthiel laughed, walking down the corridor as Matthew followed.

"Normally yes, but you're quite light on your feet. Make a great thief you would," Matthew mused, making her laugh. He was relieved she hadn't heard the conversation between himself and Eliwood, for that might've given him away knowing her ability to pester him with questions until he cracked. They met Lyn on the way there and she too helped carry some things for the siblings.

By the time they got there, they were just in time to see Ninian open her deep red eyes slightly. "Ninian! Are you awake?" Nils asked excitedly.

"Nils? Is it really you?" Ninian asked a little drowsily before he came into focus and she shot up from her seat, hugging him tightly. "Oh, you're safe!"

"Uh-huh!" Nils nodded happily, noticing the other three had arrived. He pulled out of his sister's embrace and motioned towards them. "These people helped me."

"Who are they?" Ninian inquired and Nils hesitated.

"I'm Arthiel, this is Lyn and that's Matthew," Arthiel smiled warmly.

"I'm glad you're feeling better," Lyn added as she and Arthiel took the things from Matthew along with what they were carrying and handed it to the siblings.

"Milady Arthiel, Milady Lyn….thank you," Ninian said softly.

"Oh, no need for formalities towards me, Lyn yes, not me," Arthiel laughed nervously, causing Lyn to laugh. "Just Arthiel thank you."

"Alright then, I am called Ninian," the girl replied.

"And you call me '_The Master Thief Matthew'_," Matthew chuckled. Lyn raised an eyebrow at him and Arthiel sighed, shaking her head.

"Master…Thief…M—" Ninian began slowly.

"He's kidding," Arthiel sighed, elbowing Matthew when he was about to say that he was…half-serious.

"Oh! Well um…alright," Ninian laughed. "My brother and I are traveling performers."

"Both of you? Your brother's a musician that much we've learned," Lyn smiled. "How about you Ninian?"

"I…I dance," she said a little shyly.

"Uh-oh, keep away from Sain then," Arthiel rolled her eyes.

"Who?" Ninian frowned.

Unfortunately for the exhausted girl, Sain and Kent were coming to find Lyn and speak with her and had heard the last few lines. Sain smiled and strode over.

"Oh my, you're a dancer!" he exclaimed in amazement, causing Ninian to look at Arthiel questioningly.

"That's him," Arthiel sighed, slapped her hand to her forehead.

"I'll take care of it," Matthew offered, tapping the green on the shoulder and motioning towards the door. "You can pester the poor girl later."

"Um yeah…of course," Sain nodded a little sadly, turning to walk off. Arthiel smiled gratefully at Matthew as they passed and Sain chuckled; muttering something about Matthew having gone soft for her. This earned him a whack on Matthew's behalf. Kent merely stood at the door beside them and laughed.

"A dancer? Your clothes don't look like those of a dancer," Lyn commented, resuming conversation.

"Ninian dances to honor life. It's special…," Nils explained. "Sacred."

"A sacred dance? What does that mean?" Arthiel asked.

"I…the dance I perform when we travel is just a normal dance, one that revitalizes like Nils' music," Ninian replied. "My other dance though…when they caught me, I twisted my ankle. I cannot dance to aid you…I'm sorry."

"Please don't worry," Lyn smiled. "We're just happy to see that you're out of harm's way."

"Thank you, the both of you," Ninian returned the smile. "And of course the others that fought alongside you."

"but I am concerned about your leg; you can't travel on it," Lyn pointed out.

"I've an idea. Would it be too much to ask that we travel with you?" Nils suggested.

"I can't allow that! It's far too dangerous!" Lyn exclaimed.

"How come?" Nils inquired.

"We're being hunted. We never know when we're going to be attacked," Arthiel replied.

"We wouldn't be a hindrance, we could even help you. Right Ninian?" Nils smiled at his sister.

"Yes, we might be able to help repay our debt using our…special talents," Ninian added.

"Special abilities?" both Lyn and Arthiel inquired, frowning.

"When someone poses a threat to us, we can sense its approach," Ninian explained.

"Truly? That's amazing!" Lyn stated.

"We can feel it coming, but can't do anything to stop it. You're warriors though, so you don't have that worry," Nils said. Lyn smiled and turned to look at the knights in the doorway.

"What do you think Kent?" Lyn inquired.

"I think leaving them here would cause the two of you more worry than having them travel with us," Kent replied.

"Sain? Oh, never mind, I know what your answer is," Lyn commented, making Matthew, Kent and Arthiel laugh as Sain frowned. She turned back to the siblings. "Do you want to travel with us? Even with the danger?"

"Of course!" Nils nodded.

"But what about Ninian's leg?" Lyn asked. "In battle, I know Nils can help us with his music but…you cannot dance or move around quickly to avoid danger. What will we do?"

"I'll lend her Lunar," Arthiel offered. "She can stay near my or even in the caravan and Lunar will keep her safe."

"And what of your safety Lady Arthiel?" Kent questioned worriedly.

"Yes, you're our tactician; you're always in danger out on the battlefield and have Lunar to protect you," Lyn pointed out. "What will you do if he is not there?"

"One – I've asked you to stop putting '_Lady_' in front of my name Kent," Arthiel laughed. "And two – um…well…I'm light enough on my feet to avoid being hit…I guess."

"I'll teach her," Matthew suddenly blurted out and mentally kicked himself two seconds later as everyone turned to look at him questioningly. He continued kicking himself mentally as he spoke. "I can…teach her how to defend herself as we travel. She's small and agile enough already to be a fine thief, I've told her that…or fight like one anyway. I've got an extra blade too."

"Alright, it's settled," Lyn smiled. "Ninian, Nils, you two may come with us as long as Ninian rests herself and her ankle. Lunar will protect you when the time comes, and Matthew, you will teach Arthiel how to defend herself if need be when Lunar is absent from her side."

"You have our gratitude Milady," Ninian stated, bowing politely, It was then that she spotted one of her fingers that was usually not bare contained an absence.

"Oh…," Ninian gasped.

"What's wrong Ninian?" her brother asked.

"I've lost my ring," she stated simply.

"Your ring? Has someone taken it?" Arthiel inquired, eyeing Matthew suspiciously with a playful smile.

"What?!" Matthew cried indignantly at her look, smiling equally.

"Not Ninis' Grace?!" Nils whined and his sister nodded. "They stole it? Those curs!"

"Was it valuable?" Lyn asked.

"It was a keepsake from our departed mother," Ninian explained. "It was blessed by the spirit of Ninis…there's no other like it in the world. And now we're lost it to those villains. There's nothing we can do."

Lyn turned to Arthiel and asked to speak with her a moment outside. They headed past the three men to the hallway as Sain resumed his attempts a wooing Ninian. This caused Kent to scold him, Matthew to be amused, Ninian to be a little shy and Nils to be confused.

"What is it?" Arthiel asked once they were out of earshot.

"Well…you heard their story….what do you think?" she inquired. "I'd really love to retrieve Ninian's ring for her."

"What? Are you serious?" Arthiel looked shocked and Lyn merely nodded. "But what about…if Nils is right, those thieves might prove to be too strong for us."

"Well…I think we're a fairly thought group now, with the addition of Lucius as well as the siblings…," Lyn pondered. "What should we do?"

"I think…," Arthiel began, pausing as an image of Cajiga stealing her precious ribbons with bells flashed through her mind. Ninian's situation was much the same, although she knew what the ring meant whereas Arthiel knew not what her ribbon and bells had been. "I feel we should retrieve the ring as well."

"You want to help them? That's great!" Lyn smiled happily. "I was hoping you'd say that Arthiel."

The two girls rejoined the others in the room. "Kent! Sain!" Lyn exclaimed as they walked in and the two knights looked over, coming to her attention.

"Those men were headed south, we must give pursuit!" Lyn told them.

"On your word Milady!" both knights agreed.

"There's no turning back now," Lyn smiled. "It's too dark now, but in the morning, we ride!"

The companions all headed into the large main room that branched off to the bedrooms and called everyone's attention. Lyn explained the situation as well as introduced the siblings to the large group.

Arthiel noticed that Sain seemed to be avoiding Lucius slightly and frowned, asking Kent why this was.

"He mistook him for a woman earlier," Kent told her. Everyone in the group laughed, save Sain. Those that had been there remembered and those that had not been there put two and two together judging by Sain's womanizing ways and Lucius' strong feminine-appearance**  
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**Lannie:** I'm happy I'm finally done this chapter, it was so long! But that's okay, I make up for it with a filler chapter next… (Laughs mischievously) Alright, hope you liked my introduction to the siblings. Then there was that cameo appearance of Hector and the fact that Matthew knows both him and Eliwood…yay! Anyway, hope this keeps you interested and I'll see you next time. R&R!!!

P.S. I've given up on finding a new name for it…nothing comes to mind. So unless anyone gives me some cool suggestions, its staying as sad as it is. Ciao!


	10. Chapter 9: More Than A Lesson To Fight

_**Lannie:**__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo.  
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_**Chapter Nine: More Than a Lesson to Fight**_

_Knock, knock, knock!_

Arthiel muttered into her pillow as she got to her feet, finally deciding the answer whoever had been knocking without end for the past minute or so. She stumbled around her room quickly, found her cloak and put it on. She scurried over to the door grumpily as the knocking persisted.

She swung the door open to reveal Matthew standing there, smirking. "Gee, took ya long enough! Man, you do ever sleep like a rock!" he laughed.

"Sleep…tired…what are…late time…you here….Matthew?" Arthiel mumbled incoherently but Matthew got the gist of it.

"I know it's late and I know you're tired, but I've arrange Nils to revitalize you so we can begin your first lesson," Matthew explained. At this, her eyes shot open and she looked up at him with a shocked expression.

"Excuse me?" Arthiel blinked repeatedly.

"I've got to train you to defend yourself when Lunar can't protect you right?" Matthew inquired.

"Yeah but—"

"Well I figured, since we're going to get that ring tomorrow and we're kind of going to their stronghold, you're going to be in definite need of defending, whether we can cover it or not," Matthew interjected.

"Oh…," was all she could muster before Matthew grabbed her arm and pulled her along. They found Nils and Ninian awake in the same room they'd been in that evening, sitting on the couch and talking together.

As per Matthew's previous request, Nils got up and played Arthiel a tune to give her energy. Before Arthiel could even say anything, Matthew thanked the boy and waved to them as he dragged her off outside.

"Alright," Matthew smirked. "Time to begin your training."

He went over to a boulder and unclipped his red cloak, sliding it from his shoulders and placing it delicately on the rock.

"You make it look like it's fragile," Arthiel mused.

"No, but it's my trademark cloak, so I never let anything happen to it," Matthew smirked.

"Just like that smirk?" Arthiel inquired, walking over to him.

"Yes actually," Matthew laughed. "Now, off with the cloak."

"What?" Arthiel frowned.

"I'm teaching you speedy and quick maneuvers here, your cloak slows you down," Matthew explained. "It's why I removed mine."

"But I always wear it, isn't it smarter to train with it, just like in battle?" Arthiel asked.

"Just trust me," Matthew sighed, shaking his head. Arthiel mumbled unintelligibly but complied, unclipping her black cloak and placing it beside his.

He unsheathed his main dagger, the one with a slightly curved blade and the intricately carved line, and held it in one hand while he tossed her the extra matching one from a hidden part of boot.

She caught it and walked a few feet away, ready for his first instructions. As a slight wind blew by, she shivered, cursing her mid-thigh length short and thin t-shirt. _This is why I always wear my cloak…because I freeze without it._

Matthew looked her over and couldn't help but stare, for he had never seen the petite frame that lay beneath her large black cloak. As many curious thoughts raced through his mind, he shook them clear and decided to concentrate on the task at hand.

"Alright, like I said earlier, we're going to start with a few quick maneuvers, most of which test your hand-eye coordination and reflexes," Matthew told her. "Whatever happens, don't worry, if either of us get hurt, Serra's inside and I've warned her about frantic knocking in the middle of the night."

"That sounds so positive Matthew," Arthiel said sarcastically.

"I try," he replied, smirking again. "Now, I want you to attack me, see how you would do this and we'll go from there."

"Deal," Arthiel nodded. She took a deep breath and streaked towards him, dagger close to her side. A few paces from him, she directed herself left, reaching out her right hand that held the blade. Matthew sidestepped it and turned to face her as she skidded to a stop.

"Not bad," Matthew smiled. "Pretty quick. You'd catch a bandit or soldier with that easily any day."

"But that's not all we're facing anymore now is it?" Arthiel sighed.

"Nope," Matthew shrugged.

He then proceeded in teaching her different ways to make an approach on an enemy, different ways to handle her blade, various in-close attacks as well as working her hand-eye coordination by throwing at targets (all of which were surrounding trees).

After an hour and a half of non-stop teaching, Matthew called for a break, knowing they were both a little tired. They walked over to the boulder where their cloaks lay and sat on the ground beside it, leaning back on it_  
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"May I ask why you're spying on the girl?" Sain asked as he stepped into the main room where Kent was up keeping watch. The room was empty except for the red knight, and it looked out onto the front entrance of the fortress, where Matthew and Arthiel were training. He had been sitting there for almost and hour and a half now, although he would not admit it. 

"I am not spying on her," Kent replied indignantly. "I'm keeping the night watch, you know that."

"Yes, but the night watch consists of watching our surroundings in case of attack," Sain reminded him, sitting down as well. "I don't remember "babysitter" being part of the job description."

"I'm not being a babysitter," Kent said sternly. "I am merely keeping an eye on them to make sure no one gets hurt."

"Kent, Kent, Kent," Sain repeated, shaking his head. "You worry too much about her, she can handle herself, that's what he's teaching her about anyway. And from what we've talked about so far and seen, you and I both know he would obviously not let anything happen to her."

"I know that Sain it's just I…I…," Kent trailed off, burying in head in his hands.

"I know Kent," Sain smiled thoughtfully, patting his friend on the back. "She really reminds you of your sister that much?"

"Everything about her reminds me of my sister," Kent sighed, looking up. "Her hair, her eyes, her speech, the age difference it's just…so similar."

"I never met your sister during the time we knew each other before the accident but…from what you'd told me…," Sain pondered, watching as Matthew and Arthiel finally sat down for a break, "they really are similar."

"Sometimes, when times like this arise, and we talk my sister…I…I really do wish that it's her," Kent told him friend, something that did apparently not surprise him.

"Well, everything would fit I suppose," Sain commented, looking at the other man. "Your sister never was found. Perhaps the people that killed your parents took Arthiel and trained her as a tactician all these years and the reason she does not remember is because of her memory being blocked my the magic of those that had her."

"It is a strong possibility…," Kent nodded, looking out the window at the orange-haired girl in question. "One that I dearly wish will be proven true._  
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"You're a pretty quick learner," Matthew commented as they sat there, looking up at the black sky. A few stars poked out here and there. 

"Yeah, I don't know why but it just felt natural," Arthiel explained, shrugging.

"Ever learned before and you're just not telling me?" Matthew mused. He frowned when Arthiel's face darkened and she stared at the ground in front of her. "What? What is it? Did I say something wrong?"

"No it's just that…well I…I don't know if I've learn before or not," Arthiel replied, looking up at him.

"What do you mean? How can you not know whether you've done something or…," Matthew trailed off, an idea coming to mind. "Oh…you can't remember can you? It's not…um…"

"It's not amnesia or anything," Arthiel chuckled a little darkly. "No…it's um…whoever trained me to be a tactician…whoever taught me what I know…they didn't want me to leave. I can't remember who they were or anything but, I know that I did something against them or refused to follow some big order and…I ran away. Lunar and I left, and for that, to make sure whatever I had known about them wouldn't be found out, they magically locked my memories."

"Well that bites," Matthew commented, making Arthiel giggle a little.

"Yeah…it does," she nodded. "The worse part is, not only have they taken my memories of my time with them but…if there ever was any life I had before them, that's been sealed off too."

"What makes you so sure you had a life before them, maybe you were always with them," Matthew pointed out.

"There isn't anything to tell me I had any kind of family or anything before them but…actually it's just hope that I did, after something Sain told me," Arthiel smiled thoughtfully. When Matthew looked at her questioningly, she sighed. "Promise me you won't say anything to anyone? Especially the person involved."

"Thief's honor," Matthew promised, placing a hand over his heart.

"You have honor?" Arthiel giggled, making Matthew stick his tongue out at her.

"I swear I won't tell, I keep secrets very well," Matthew told her.

"Well, you know how Sain always teases me and Kent about being long-lost siblings or something?" Arthiel asked and Matthew nodded. "Well…that's why I hope that I had a family side from those who trained me."

"What do you mean?"

"Sain told me that…and this is the part you can't tell anyone…he told me that when they were younger, about thirteen, Kent lost his family. His parents were killed and…and he had a younger sister…one with orange hair and crystal blue eyes," Arthiel explained, causing Matthew's eyes to widen. "Yes, you see the coincidence. Well it's just that, his sister was never found. For that, Kent's always been so protective of me and…"

"So you were hoping that if those that blocked your memory and hurt you took you from a home, it was Kent's family?" Matthew inquired.

"Yeah…," Arthiel nodded. A little ways away, inside the main room of the fortress, a very shocked red knight stared at the two, while another knight, one in green, merely smiled.

"Well, care for another round?" Matthew asked, getting up.

"Sure, but don't go easy on me this time, I wanna try an actual fight," Arthiel told him, accepting his hand to help her up.

"You sure?" he inquired, taking a few steps back from her.

"Yeah, you said Serra had been warned right?" she smiled, causing him to laugh.

"Alright then, bring it on," Matthew taunted, unsheathing his dagger and standing his ground.

She smirked and streaked forward, dagger close beside her.

"Didn't you try this the first time?" Matthew chuckled, waiting.

She reached him and turned left, like she had done previously. However, she quickly changed her course and sidestepped as he did, catching him on the right arm with her dagger. He skidded to a stop a few feet away and examined the cut on his forearm.

"Nice one," he smirked. "Quick learned and applier."

"What can I say, I have such a good teacher, he even lets me beat him up," Arthiel giggled.

"Beat me up? Oh, you're on now," Matthew challenged, waving her forward with the hand that did not carry his blade.

She nodded and rushed at him. She swung her right fist with the blade sideways, trying to catch him in the chest but he ducked it easily. He thrust out his own blade to just barely catch her on her right side, for her shirt had moved just enough to show skin. He then pushed her past him, sticking out his foot and causing her to fall forward

"Now we're even, we've both bled," Matthew smirked as she thumped onto the sand. Before he could even react, her legs shot out and curled around his, causing him to fall and eat sand beside her.

"No, **now** we're even," Arthiel laughed.

He stood up and held out a hand to help her up, which she accepted.

"Hey Matthew," Arthiel began as they dusted themselves off. They checked to make sure their wounds weren't too bad.

"Yeah?" he looked over at her.

"Now that you know something I've kept from the others, would you mind me asking something of you?" she inquired.

"You just did," he laughed. She regarded him seriously and he stopped laughing. "Sure, go ahead."

"How did you know Eliwood?" he asked.

"What?" he looked shocked, calculating how she would suspect this.

"Earlier today, I saw you talking to him before he left," Arthiel explained. "You two knew each other, right? And you were talking about someone else too but…I didn't quite catch their name or anything."

Matthew' face dropped and he looked away from her. "I can't tell you."

"What? Why not?!" Arthiel exclaimed.

"It's a secret," Matthew shrugged.

"That's it? Matthew, you just found out something I'm keeping from nearly everyone. Lyn, Sain and Kent are the only ones that know about the magic blocking my memory!" she snapped. "And…no one even knew that I secretly wished Kent's past and mine to be the same!"

"I know it's just…," Matthew sighed.

"What, you don't trust me? Is that it? I can't keep a secret as well as a thief can?" Arthiel inquired, irritated and Matthew looked up at her.

"No I just…I really can't tell you Arthiel," he stated.

"Fine," she said flatly. She turned on her heel and went to grab her cloak but he grabbed her wrist, whirling her back around to face him.

"Look, please don't be mad I just…I'm not allowed to tell you," Matthew explained. "I would if I could, I really would. But I can't."

She raised an eyebrow at him and he sighed. "Really, I swear it."

Thinking quickly, he raced over to his cloak and reached into his pocket. "I know I may not be able to repay your trust in confiding in me but…I can give you something I know you'll be happy with."

He pulled the blue ribbon with the two bells out of his pocket and Arthiel's face lit up with shock. She streaked over and took it from him, examining every inch of it like a little kid getting a new toy. "How…what…you had this?" she asked, her face contorting with anger again.

"Yeah but…,' Matthew began but Arthiel glared at him, turning to stalk off. "Wait!"

She paused, turning back to face him. "When you and Lunar chased me into that alleyway and I disappeared, I was only on an upper ledge, I was still near. So…when that bandit…Cajiga…came after you, I saw it happen."

"And you didn't think to maybe stop him or help?" Arthiel inquired crossly.

"Well that's my style as a thief you know," Matthew smirked, but his grin soon faded when he noticed his jokes weren't helping her mood. "I figured Lunar could protect you, so I didn't step in, and you were already mad at me anyway for stealing your money."

Arthiel seemed to calm down a little since her shoulders relaxed and she crossed her arms, listening as he continued.

"When he stole this ribbon and left, he said he intended to sell it, and I figured that sure as heck wasn't fair, since I had stolen your money and it was all you had left," Matthew went on. "I…I kinda just got mad, feeling I had to help. I tracked him down quickly and deftly stole it back. By the time he reached the vendor's market and explained his prize, I was long gone to find you and give it back. You know the rest, since when I did find you it was when I pulled you outta that fight."

"I…I'm…I'm sorry for getting mad at you," Arthiel said sadly, staring at the ground. "It's just…with everything I told you, you wouldn't tell me anything and then…then this…thank you for getting it back and returning it to me."

Matthew smiled and patted her on the head. "Don't worry about it Ary."

"Why did you keep this all this time?" Arthiel asked, taking the blue ribbon and bells from his hand in her own and lifting it between them.

"Uh…um…well that is…," Matthew stammered, knowing even he couldn't think of a plausible excuse this fast. So, he simply chuckled sheepishly. "Actually…I don't know."

"Alright then," she smiled, shaking her head and laughing. She then became serious again. "Um…one more thing…" His face darkened slightly, thinking it was about Eliwood again.

"About what you wouldn't…or couldn't tell me…," she hesitated, looking up at him. "Everyone is entitled to their secrets, just as long as they don't become too heavy to bear alone. If…if ever you feel the need to confide in someone about them um…well I…uh…"

He smiled (a genuine one for once) and leaned over, kissing her on the cheek, making her eyes widen. "You'll be the first person I go to when that time comes," he told her before ruffling her hair. He grabbed his cloak and put it on before passing her hers. "I think that's enough training and conversation for one night, you?"

"Agreed," Arthiel nodded, putting on her own cloak. He extended a hand towards the ribbon.

"May I?" he offered. She nodded and passed it to him, turning around. He slid the ribbon into place around her neck and tied it securely. She turned back to him.

"Thank you, again," she smiled.

"No problem," he returned the smile before starting towards the door. "Better see Serra so she can patch up these wounds before we go back to bed._  
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_Knock, knock, knock!_

"God do you know what time it is?" Serra asked irritably as her door swung open. Her eyes widened slightly seeing the state Matthew and Arthiel were in. "Lord what in the world did you two do?"

"He taught me how to fight," Arthiel smiled as Serra grabbed her staff from over by her bed.

"You two are insane," Serra complained. "You could've seriously hurt yourself you know! God this is almost like the time—"

"Serra, will you just shut up and heal us, I'm tired," Matthew stated, his eyes narrowing at her.

"Like the time two kids from my village had a bad sparring match!" Serra squeaked.

As the pink-haired girl whispered prayers of St. Elimine and began working on Arthiel's injuries, the orange-haired girl couldn't help but eye the two strangely. The cleric then patched up Matthew and said a rather quick goodnight before darting back into her room and closing the door.

Matthew and Arthiel walked back through the hall to their corridor and Arthiel stopped in front of her door as Matthew bid her goodnight and went by.

"Just another thing you can't tell me huh?" Arthiel inquired, making him turn around, a confused expression on his face. "The reason you and Serra seem acquainted as well."

Matthew sighed and walked back to her. "I promise you, that someday, I'll tell you about all this. The secrets I'm keeping, there's a reason, and it keeps me from confiding in you, even though I know you'd never tell," he explained. "Someday, when this is over, I'll be able to answer all of the questions you asked me tonight that I could not. Deal?'

"Deal," Arthiel nodded, smiling. She opened her door and turned inside.

"Goodnight Ary," he smirked.

"Goodnight Matty," she replied before smiling once more and closing the door behind her.

Matthew's face darkened and he shook his head before walking off down the hall to find his room again.

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**Lannie: **And a filler chapter! I wanted at least one of their lessons to be portrayed for a reason, the things that would be exchanged and said. Anyway, hope you liked it, R&R like always. ...My thanks to Lady DragonStarr for suggesting to just take out "Blazing" from the title, it's shorter and it works. Thank you also to Sandy for your suggestion :).  



	11. Chapter 10: A Special Ring and Suspicion

_**Lannie:**__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

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_**Chapter Ten: The Black Shadow**_

In a fortress where a troop of mercenaries and bandits hid, resting and awaiting their next orders, a muscled man informed a fair-looking woman with short bob-cut blue hair of the events that had taken place miles away at another fortress.

"So the brother escaped and the sister was rescued by a band of strangers. Do I understand you correctly Beyard?" the woman with blue hair asked.

"Yes…they ambushed us and…," Beyard was cut off.

"Hold your excuses!" the woman snapped angrily and Beyard cringed. "The end is all that matters."

"Yes ma'am," the blonde soldier nodded. At this point he would agree with anything she said in order to avoid punishment.

She stroked the neck of her horse with one hand, keeping the other behind her back. Her horse whinnied softly, gazing at her with blue eyes. "And your plan for recovering the siblings is?" she asked, addressing Beyard even if she still looked at her horse.

"We uh…we have word that the entire group is headed this way," Beyard replied a little nervously. "With the brats in tow."

"They're coming here?" she asked, turning round to face him, here eyes a little wide. "Why would they do that?"

"They may well be after this ring…it's a rare piece," he lifted a hand to her and opened it, revealing a small silver ring with an aqua stone lying in his palm. "We took it from the girl. It was a stroke of luck that we did, especially if it brings them to us now. I'll grab the whole lot of 'em with this to bait the trap."

"I see…," the woman mused, a smirk painting itself across her lips. "Very well, I'll give you another chance."

She turned away again and mounted her horse, sitting high above it. "I've business elsewhere, but I shall return once it's finished. You have until sunrise tomorrow. Do you understand?"

"Yes," Beyard nodded stiffly.

"If you do not have the children when I return…," the blue-haired woman narrowed her eyes, "my hand will deal you the Fang's punishment. Remember that. Bear it closely in mind."

She cracked the stirrups and off she went, out the gates and away into the sunlight. Beyard stood there watching, formulating plans in his mind. He smiled as he turned and strode off down the hall, yelling orders to all that could hear_.  
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The afternoon sun blared in the sky as a large group of horses and people stopped at the hilltop near a fortress. Many dismounted their horses while others piled out of the back of the caravan, stretching their sleepy limbs and readying their weapons for whatever this battle held.

"I believe they went in here," Lyn announced, pointing down the valley towards the fortress. Beside her stood two siblings, a boy and a girl with aqua blue hair, the orange-haired tactician and her faithful black wolf, his blue accents glowing in the sunlight.

"Milady, are you really going in there to get the ring back?" Nils inquired, exchanging glances with his sister as they held their hands firmly together.

"Yes, we are," Lyn nodded, still looking down upon their target.

"But this is their stronghold! They're bound to be well defended, not to mention well armed!" Nils complained with worry.

"Please forget about the ring," Ninian pleaded, squeezing her brother's hand harder. "It's okay…"

"Arthiel's agreed to attempt this…recovery," Lyn explained, turning to look at them as Arthiel smiled. "I wouldn't be here if not for that. Arthiel believes we can do this. I'm sure that decision was not made lightly. With Arthiel at my side and everyone else helping us, I'm confident we can win."

"Thank you Lyn," Arthiel beamed confidently despite the butterflies that swirled in her stomach at the thought of what they were planning to do. She held out her hand to the dancer and motioned to the caravan. "Alright, let's get you back Ninian."

"Thank you," Ninian smiled, taking her hand as she led her past and Lunar escorted her the rest of the way, giving her something to lean on and make sure she didn't fall.

"Milady…," Nils whispered, looking up at the tactician.

"Ah-ah-ah!" Arthiel giggled, waving a hand in front of him. "What did I say about calling me that Nils!"

"Not to…," Nils mumbled through his smile and he hugged her. "Thank you."

Any more words were broken when Sain and Kent rode up the hill and the rest of the legion approached to hear the news of their recon.

"Milady Lyndis! Arthiel! There is more of the foe inside than we thought!" Sain announced and murmurs and whispers broke out among the listeners.

"This is their stronghold. It's imperative we move carefully," Lyn stated, addressing not only Arthiel and the Knights, but the entire legion.

"Exactly Milady," Kent nodded. He pointed down the hill to the area of the fortress that he and Sain had investigated just earlier. "That narrow corridor can be used to our advantage. If we draw the enemy through there, we can engage them in smaller numbers and remain relatively safe."

"If time is a concern, we can always rush them…," Sain added and Kent frowned at his fellow Knight.

"If we do that, we'd better be sure we can win," Kent retorted and before the two knights could argue over what to do, Lyn silenced them with a wave of her hands, looking to Arthiel.

"Alright, so Arthiel, what do you think?" she asked. "How we move forward is completely up to you."

"Oh…um…," Arthiel stammered a little more nervously than she had expected, mostly letting the nervous fluttering in her stomach overwhelm her. She pushed it away and swallowed hard, nodding. "Alright then!"

"Just don't go orderin' us 'round the wrong corridor now," Matthew laughed from his comfortable spot at the edge of the legion, leaning against a tree, twirling his dagger in his hands.

"Thanks for the positive support Matthew," Arthiel said dryly before looking down at the fortress then back at the group of people before her. "Sain, Kent, how far along the corridor did you go?"

"Just within the first room, but it was far enough to see it branches off into two separate corridors, which by the looks of the place probably meet once again at the stronghold base," Kent explained. "No doubt, that is where their leader stays, and he probably has the ring."

"Alright, I want you to divide into two separate groups, one for each corridor," Arthiel announced, looking at the legion. "However, since Ninian cannot walk well, Lunar will stay here to guard her but…I would like to ask at least one other to keep guard over her and our things, we would not want to be raided whilst we fight inside the fortress."

"I'll do it," Dorcas grunted, swinging his axe over his shoulder as he walked a few paces away and stationed himself at the front of the caravan, looking menacing.

"Thank you Dorcas," Arthiel smiled, nodding. "Alright then, for the West corridor, Sain will be in charge."

"Lovely," Sain smiled and most rolled their eyes, especially Kent and Arthiel.

"With him I want Lucius, Will, Rath, Serra and Erk," Arthiel went on. "That way you will be able to fire over the walls, for they look fairly short, and Serra, you can heal them is retaliation hits them."

The members she spoke of nodded and moved over towards Sain, forming the first group.

"Meanwhile, Lyn you will be in charge of the second group that will head down the more open corridor, it will be easier for the larger and in-close fighters," Arthiel smiled. "Kent, Florina, Matthew and I will accompany you."

"What?" Lyn asked, looking confused. "But Arthiel you just said it's a more in-close and open area…and Lunar's here with Ninian…are you sure you want to--"

Arthiel moved her cloak sideways enough for Lyn to see the dagger sheathed and strapped to her thigh. "For this battle, think of me not as your tactician, but as just another member of the legion. My orders and strategies have been set, now it is time to play them through."

Lyn looked like she was about to protest but instead, her face relaxed and she smiled, nodding. "Alright, so long as you share command, I'm not losing my tactician completely."

"Deal," Arthiel nodded, smiling as well. She then felt a tugging at her cloak and turned to see Nils looking up at her. "What is it Nils?"

"Which team shall I assist?" Nils inquired happily.

Arthiel exchanged worried glances with Lyn and before she answered, Nils face showed defiance. "I am not staying put here, I told you I would assist, and I will."

"But Nils, there will be much turmoil and battle going on, you wont really have time to play us music to energize us, no matter how welcome it would be," Arthiel explained.

"Then I won't, I can still help though," Nils smiled, making everyone frown.

"You can? How?" Lyn asked, quite intrigued.

He pointed to a small cut on Arthiel's cheek, one that she hadn't bothered to have healed after her last training session with Matthew. A shiver ran down her spine as Nils' hand glowed aqua and it came to hover above her cheek.

He pulled away moments later and Arthiel placed a hand upon her now smooth cheek.

"I thought you were a Bard? That you played music to refresh…how…how can you heal?" Arthiel inquired in awe.

"Ninis' Grace…I can feel it near…it calls to us," Nils stated, looking out to the fortress. "It gives us power, adds to our own…I may not be able to heal large wounds, but I can still heal nevertheless, and my powers will get stronger once Ninis' Grace is back with my sister and I."

"That is a precious gift you and your sister possess," Lyn smiled. "Well, I believe he can assist, what do you say Arthiel?"

Arthiel returned Lyn's smiled before giving Nils a stern gaze. "You better stick close."

"I will," he beamed proudly, laughing.

"Alright then," Lyn announced, brandishing her sword and looking down towards the fortress. "Move out!_  
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The battle cry rang out as Lyn and Kent streaked down the narrow corridor towards the two oncoming Cavaliers. Nils, Arthiel and Matthew stood beside Huey as Florina patted the slightly nervous horse's neck.

"I don't like the looks of this…," Florina muttered worriedly.

"Don't worry, its okay Florina…we've faced worse before…," Arthiel said comfortingly. She noticed Matthew had his face glued to a wall to her left and she frowned. "Matthew, what on earth are you doing?"

"Shh!" he hissed and she furrowed her brows angrily. He turned and smirked at her,

"Uh-oh, I know that smirk. What devious plan have you cooked up this time?" Arthiel inquired, wary of the answer.

"This wall is crumbling and weak right there," Matthew pointed to where he had been and the other three spotted the small hole which he had doubt been peeking through. "A Mage and a sword-wielding Soldier. No idea we're even here. Feel up to it?"

"What? Me?" Arthiel asked, pointing to herself.

"No the other trained tactician around here…," Matthew sighed. "Of course you! Think of it as a sort of…final test to your training!"

"But Matthew…training isn't real there…there isn't danger like there is here…they won't go easy on us if we're not up to it…," Arthiel stammered.

"Exactly my point, time to put what you learned into gear. This is why you learned remember? So that Lunar could protect Ninian and you could protect yourself," Matthew told her.

A small hand gripped hers and she looked down at a smiling Nils. "I know you can do it Arthiel! Your plans have worked for everyone this far! And besides, you told Lyn to think of you as a member of the legion this time…a fighter!"

_**A young girl who could be no more then fourteen years old with shoulder-length layered orange hair twirled a dagger in each hand as she walked in circles, a ring of at least ten men, all cloaked in black with masks, standing like statues around her. A cry shot from the leader as he rushed her and she leaped into the air, landing behind him and landing a kick in his back. He stumbled forwards before turning to her.**_

_**She smirked as he rushed her again and this time, she slid to the ground between his legs, catching both knees with her blades as she went by. He cried out in pain and fell as she flicked her daggers back without looking, hitting him square in the back. **_

_**A tall man with half his face wrapped in cloth seemed to glide past the group, towards her, his black cloak fluttering behind him. He picked her daggers out with bony hands and handed them to her, smiling. His golden eyes beamed with pride as he patted her on the head.**_

"_**You have done well dear," he whispered. "Quite well Arthiel…"**_

Arthiel shook the scene from her head, receiving worried looks from the three people around her. She forced a smile at them and laughed a little. "Sorry, lost in my own thoughts there!"

Nils and Florina accepted the answer, smiling together but Matthew frowned at her, not voicing whatever questions were passing through his mind.

"Florina!" Arthiel exclaimed, turning to face the shy Pegasus Rider. "Would you do the honors of breaking that wall with your lance? I feel Matthew is right, it's time to test my abilities against an actual opponent."

Florina nodded and back Huey up to face the cracked wall. "Ready?" she asked both Arthiel and Matthew, who exchanged glances before nodding. Florina smiled and Huey reared as she brought her lance to the crack in the wall, causing it to shatter and crumble.

Matthew dashed into the room first, apparently choosing the Mage as he streaked to the right half of the room towards the red-clad opponent. He clearly caught him off guard as he rushed him, dagger slicing through his Mage robes to reach skin and blood.

Arthiel jumped the remainder of the wall after him and skidded to a stop in front of the sword-wielding Soldier.

"Hello there pretty," the Soldier grinned beneath his helmet, revealing yellow teeth. "I was getting a little bored…you'll do just fine for fun!"

"If it's a fight you find fun, then sure, I'll do just fine," Arthiel smirked.

He grinned mischievously and rushed towards her, his sword raised in the air. Suddenly a small flash seemed to cross Arthiel's mind and just like that, she felt like she was thrown into the past of whatever had emerged in her thoughts earlier, like she was fourteen again.

She leaped into the air, surprising the Soldier, who ran past, only to be kicked in the back once she landed. He flew forward and hit a pillar, letting out curse words. He leaned on his sword and slowly got to his feet, blood dripping from his mouth. He spat a wad of it to the dusty ground and tightened the grip on his sword hilt.

Arthiel could feel the eyes of the others watching her. Florina on her horse, Nils at Huey's side, and Matthew a few feet away, already finished with his opponent. But she didn't care. Feelings overwhelmed her mind at the moment, feelings that she knew to be hers, but that confused her, because she couldn't remember feeling this at home during a battle except for when she dealt strategies to the others.

Danger and the heat of battle never seemed this fun. The soldier brandished his blade again and ran at her again, keeping it in the air, ready to strike. She ran, quick on her light feet, and slid to the ground, passing between his legs as she struck out, slicing his inner knees with her dagger.

Simultaneously, she skidded to a stop on her knees, her cloak billowing behind her in a storm of dust and the soldier fell to his knees, crying out in pain. Whether it was needed at this point or not, she flicked her dagger through the air and it landed square in his back. He fell forward stiffly, never to rise again.

Arthiel panted slightly as she got up and walked over to him. She reached for her dagger but it was grabbed by another and she looked up to gaze into Matthew's hazel eyes, which were filled with questions and were narrowed slightly.

He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Nils bounding into the room to hug Arthiel.

"That was so cool!" the younger teen exclaimed happily.

Arthiel looked at Matthew for a moment before frowning at Nils. "I highly call killing someone cool…"

"I know that! I meant the technique!" Nils clapped his hands. "That was awesome!"

"Oh…well…t-thank you," Arthiel said, her hands suddenly shaking a little. She smiled at Nils, and looked at Matthew. "I had a great teacher."

"You sure did!" Nils laughed. He started to prance back to the cracked doorway. "Now c'mon, Lyn and Kent have already gone ahead! We must catch up!"

He ran out and met Florina, and Arthiel made to follow but Matthew grabbed her arm, keeping her back a moment as Florina and Nils walked off slowly, waiting for them to catch up.

"What is it?" Arthiel asked, turning to look at him. She noticed his other hand had her dagger and he held it out towards her. "Oh, right, thank you."

She reached for it but he closed his hand over it slightly. She frowned at looked up at him. "You had a great teacher, that's for sure."

"What do you mean Matthew?" she asked, puzzled as to why he was repeating what they had said. "Of course you were a great teacher, even if we only had two or three lessons coming here."

"Never said I meant me," Matthew muttered, handing her the dagger. "Everyone's entitled to their secrets, just so long as they don't become too heavy to bear, right?"

"What are you…?" Arthiel frowned. "Matthew why are you acting weird?"

He walked pass her and paused a moment at the door to look back at her, his trademark smirk had returned. "C'mon, we gotta find the others; we're missing all the fun!"

Arthiel shook her head and ran off after him, down the corridor_  
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They arrived in time to see the others scattered around the main stronghold room, where a large muscular man with messy blonde hair was on his knees, clutching his bleeding arm. Lyn stood a few feet before him, sword pointing at him.

"Aah…no I…I cannot…," he muttered, a response to whatever question had just been asked.

"Give us the ring! And swear us this oath…you must promise to leave these two alone," Lyn ordered. "If I have your vow, I'll spare your life…"

"Failure…means death…," the man breathed, bringing his hand to his mouth to reveal a vial he had been holding. He drank the contents quickly before falling to meet the floor loudly.

Lyn rushed over and examined him, her eyes wide with horror. "What?! Poison? He took his own life…"

"These are no common brigands we're dealing with," Kent commented, dismounting his horse to examine the body with Lyn. "This man was trained by a well-organized group."

Matthew eyed Arthiel and from the corner of her own gaze, she caught the look. She gave him a questioning one in return but he merely turned to look back at the scene. Arthiel sighed and rolled her eyes, confused. _What's wrong with him?_

"What do they want with Nils and Ninian?" Lyn asked, looking over at the brother and sister, who were over by the exit, where the caravan had been brought in by Dorcas. Lunar sat like a statue beside the dancer, but he stared at Arthiel. The latter smiled at him and he swished his tail across the floor.

Lyn noticed the siblings looked worried and she smiled, taking the object Kent held out to her that he had grabbed from the mercenary's hand. She stood up and walked over to them.

"Nils, Ninian, everything's going to be fine. As long as you're with us, you'll be safe," Lyn assured them.

"But…," Nils began.

"You witness our victory, correct?" Lyn inquired and Nils looked at Arthiel and Matthew, who smiled as best they could, before he nodded at Lyn. "With Arthiel's planning and my sword, you've no worries. If we all work together, there's nothing we can't overcome. I don't care who comes after you; I'll not let you be taken!"

"Really?" Ninian inquired, hope shining in her eyes.

"Yes, on my honor," Lyn smiled before looking over at Arthiel. "Right Arthiel?"

The orange-haired tactician took a quick glance at Matthew then smiled at Lyn. "Agreed."

"Milady…," Ninian whispered happily.

"Oh yes!" Lyn exclaimed, remembering what was in her hand. She held out the silver ring to the dancer and her brother as the aqua stone shone in the sunlight that managed to poke through holes in the wall and the doorway. "This is yours."

"Ah…it's…," Ninian breathed, taking the ring and placing it in its usual spot on her finger. It seemed to make both her and her brother relax and calm quite a bit, and a bit of color returned to them both.

"You called it Ninis' Grace did you not?" Lyn smiled, pointing at the dead mercenary in the center of the room. "That lout had it."

"Milady Lyndis! Thank you so much!" Nils exclaimed excitedly.

"I have no other words, save thank you," Ninian smiled, nodding.

Lyn turned to the rest of the people in the room and smiled again. "Everyone, I thank you for your help. We rest here tonight, and tomorrow, we ride towards Caelin!"

Cheers echoed in the fortress and Arthiel clapped happily along with all of them. She frowned when she noticed Matthew had suddenly gone. She turned and caught sight of a bit of red cloak disappearing around a corner and looked at Lyn and the others nervously.

"Matthew sure is acting odd, even for him," Serra whispered and Arthiel jumped at her presence.

"Oh, Serra! You startled me, I didn't hear you approach!" Arthiel laughed.

"Helps when everyone around you is cheering and clapping," Serra giggled. "So, what's up with him?"

"I have no idea…," Arthiel sighed.

"Go, I'll cover," Serra said suddenly and Arthiel looked at her questioningly. "Someone's gotta find him before he wanders off and does something to get into trouble, knowing him and his sneaky ways. You go, I'll tell Lyn when she asks."

"Alright, thanks," Arthiel smiled, darting off down the hall she'd seen him disappear through_  
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"Matthew? Matthew I know you're here!" Arthiel called quietly. She had reached the end of the hall; there was no where else to be, except this last room. She stepped in slowly. "Matthew what's going on? Why are you acting so strange-oof!" 

She was shoved into the wall beside the door and pinned there, and hand pressing against each of her arms. She looked up and her blue eyes met Matthew' familiar hazel ones.

"I'm acting strange? **I'm** acting strange?" he scoffed. "I'm not the one who pulled skilled thief moves outta my ass back there!"

"So I went for a bit of theatrics," Arthiel stated, trying to break free of his grasp. "I was still using moves you taught me."

"Are you sure about that? Looked like a bit of _well-organized_ training to me," Matthew muttered and Arthiel's eyes widened.

"Are you implying what I think you're implying?" Arthiel asked, shocked.

"Maybe," he retorted. "Depends, were you lying when I'd asked if you'd learned how to fight before I taught you?"

"What?!" Arthiel choked. "Matthew that's…I…I told you already that I didn't!"

"You also said that your memory of where you'd grown up before as you trained had been blocked by magic," Matthew reminded her. "Who's to say the enemy didn't train you before this? That Shaman the other day seemed to know you pretty well."

"Yeah but the reason my memory was blocked was because I did something against them and ran away with Lunar!" she protested.

"So you say," Matthew stated and Arthiel's face fell completely as sadness welled in her eyes.

"I see…so you don't trust me anymore is that it?" Arthiel asked, looking up at him. He gasped as he saw tears swam in her vision, threatening to fall. "For your information Matthew, I do remember some things! I remember running away with Lunar, through a dark forest as flaming arrows and dagger raced past us and yells and screams followed us! I remember as those well-aimed arrows hit branches that nearly crushed us to death! I remember running because whoever I was with before tried to kill me for leaving!"

Matthew's grip on her arms loosened completely as his arms fell uselessly to his side and he stared at her. "But I thought…I thought it was all blocked by magic and that you…you didn't remember so I…I thought that…"

"Thought that what? That I was a spy? That I was leading you all into a trap without even knowing it? Thanks for the vote of confidence," Arthiel snapped weakly. "I may not remember anything more than that, but I told you already that despite that fact, I hope that I had a life before them and that it was one I could return to once this was all over. That's why I'm doing this. Not only am I helping Lyn because I want to, but because I feel I have to – because it will hopefully bring me answers. If you don't want to believe that and accuse me instead, then that's fine, I just hope you know that even though I'm mad I won't go sending you off down a corridor to death in our next battle, nor will I leave you to die if you get hurt. I care about and trust everyone here, whether they return the gesture or not."

She walked past him towards the hallway but only made it a few feet before he grabbed her hand and kept her there despite her fidgeting.

"I'm sorry…," he breathed. "In my line of work, I never really learn to trust people but…I trusted…I _trust_ you and…and you confided in me with so much, and I so little in you because I couldn't…and yet _I'm_ the one suspecting and accusing _you_."

Arthiel slowly turned back to him to face his gaze as he kept a firm grip on her hand.

"Matthew, because the people I was with before blocked my memory by magic to keep me from telling whatever I knew about them, I do fear that I'm connected to these people. I'm afraid that every battle brings us closer to finding out I was one of them, and that…that's what keeps me fighting. That's what drives me to help Lyn because…because no matter what the truth turns out to be, I know I left because I hated what they were planning, and I want _nothing_ to do with them now," Arthiel told him, the tears from earlier staining her cheeks.

He walked up to her and wiped them away with his thumb, muttering curses at himself under his breath. "I've made you cry…_again…_," he shook his head, chuckling darkly to himself. "I'm sorry."

"That's ok, as long as I know we're okay now…then I'll look past it," Arthiel stated simply and Matthew's trademark smirk seized it's opportunity to show itself, making her smile.

"Deal," he replied as they turned to the door and walked out into the hall, back towards the main room. "Funny how our conversations often go from arguments, to sad realization, to making up again?"

"Yeah," Arthiel laughed as they walked off and a girl with pink hair smiled to herself from her place in the shadows near the door to the room they'd exited from.

"Like an old married couple," Serra whispered to herself, smiling.

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**Lannie:** Wow, was I wrong when I said I'd update in Hawkesbury! I am SO sorry! I started this chapter but couldn't find my usual love for writing this and another story absorbed my brain so I spent the last week and a half writing it (with 9 AM to 4 PM stops for stupid Day Camp monitorin). Anyway, before I started yet another something that's flooding my mind, plus the fact that I gotta get some more vacationing done before (shudder) school starts up again in three weeks (another shudder), I knew I had to at least get another chapter up, there was no way I was leaving you hanging for God knows how long...especially with a filler chapter!

Alright then, excuses and whining over with, hope you liked this chapter. R&R like always, and I hope I can bring you another chapter as soon as I can. There's only like three more chapters before Lyn's story is done though, and then I'm taking a break before I write Eliwood's story. Right then, bye!


	12. Chapter 11: Vortex of Strategy

_**Well, folks, seems I haven't fallen off the face of the earth after all. I was attacked by teachers, friends, school, homework and most of all: plotbunnies the size of elephants (which my friend and I have aptly named plotelephants!) **_

_**But, I'm happy to report I'm back, with 1/2 of my time that's not spent at my part time job to write! So, with things lined up right, and hopefully some better structure to my writing than before, I give you the next installment of my Fire Emblem Novelization series, with more to come as long as you tell me what you think in a review! **_

_**Disclaimer: **__I own nothing, except Arthiel and Lunar. Their storyline is mine, but the Fire Emblem storyline and all characters belong to Nintendo._

* * *

_**Chapter Eleven: Vortex of Strategy.**_

Lyn sighed contentedly, looking over her shoulder towards the mountains. They were so far away now, but…had it really been that long since they'd been at the base? Had it been that long since she'd left home with Arthiel, deciding to set out on a journey?

"It must have…," Lyn whispered, unaware that the orange-haired girl, riding close to her, could hear her words.

"What was that, Lyn?" Arthiel inquired.

"I…I was just noticing that the mountains seem very far away now. Have we…have we been gone that long?"

"I'm not sure. I…I think I've lost count. But, whatever number we're at, you better add two days."

"Whatever for?"

"Kent told me earlier that we're no more than two days from the castle now," Arthiel replied, a far away look on her face as she watched her fellow orange-haired companion ride at the head of the company, alongside Sain. Then came Arthiel and Lyn, then Florina, and followed by Rath with the caravan.

"Two more days…," Lyn breathed. "You may find your answers, soon. Kent said he would help you once we reached Castle Caelin."

"Maybe," the tactician shrugged. "It would be nice…but, if my mind still remains in the shadows, at least I will have the memories I've gained since you found me on the plains."

Lyn smiled, despite the sadness she could see, hiding beneath the surface of Arthiel's normally so cheerful demeanor. The orange-haired girl noticed, and smiled as well. "But, now is not the time to dwell on that. Think, Lyn, two days until we reach Caelin, and your grandfather."

"Yes…two days…," Lyn stated, silently praying to the heavens. "Hold on, Grandfather, please."

"Cheer up, Lyn," Florina suggested, picking up Huey's pace to ride alongside the two women. "If they see you looking so sad, the entire company will lose heart."

"Florina, you're right," Lyn nodded. "There's nothing to be gained by worrying. We just have to press onwards."

"That's the spirit! You've gotta keep up that optimism."

"I know, it's what I'm always telling her!" Arthiel laughed.

_--__**F**__i__**R**__e__** E**__m__**B**__l__**E**__m__--_

Voices were muddled and distorted as Ninian leaned against the inside of the caravan. The transporting vehicle was empty, save for her and the sleeping Lunar, because the others were outside, talking about what to do.

Sighing, she closed her eyes, wincing in pain as her head throbbed. Absentmindedly, she played with the ring on her finger – Nini's Grace. She and her brother were so lucky to be in this company, because they were so caring. They'd gotten back the ring, and now, she and her brother were more strongly linked.

She may have an injured ankle, and she may be weakened, but slowly, she was feeling better, all thanks to her brother, the ring, and these wonderful people who they'd happened upon.

Disrupting her thoughts was another wave of pain, and she screwed her eyes shut, wincing. She clutched the ring, and held on tight as the blackness of her mind shifted and formed with pale shades of gray, purple and blue.

Images formed and sounds slowly made their presence known.

"_**Fire!" a voice yells, and an arrow launches out of a large wooden contraption. It whistles through the air, passing horse-mounted knights and foot soldiers to the West, as well as Shamans and Mages to the East.**_

_**It heads over a small hill, in the direction of a large but unsuspecting group of people. At the center of the small gathering is a young woman with long green hair, tied in a high ponytail.**_

_**The arrow heads for her, and strikes her dead in the chest, protruding from the other end. Everyone around her gasps, and her eyes roll upwards, before she collapses.**_

"Lady Lyndis!" Ninian yelled, her eyes snapping open as she lurched forward.

Lunar's ears perked up, and he raised his head, regarding her oddly. He sniffed at the air, and his fur bristled, sensing a powerful aura about the blue-haired girl.

"Lunar…," Ninian wheezed, out of breath. "Get to Lady Lyndis. A fatal arrow approaches!"

The wolf sprung upwards and darted out of the caravan, skidding on the dirt path where it was parked. He kicked off and raced towards the group, who stood at the base of a small hill. His eyes found Lyn before he reached them, and he headed for her, barking.

The group turned to frown at him, and he barely heard his master's "Lunar, no!" before he jumped at the Sacaen woman, knocking her to the ground. As the others yelled, and Arthiel scolded him, he merely stood up and growled, keeping them away from the spot where Lyn had been standing.

A split second later, an arrow came ripping through the air and dug into the ground.

Everyone blinked.

"How…," Arthiel trailed off, looking from the arrow to her wolf. "He came from the caravan…"

"Ninian!" Nils shouted, taking off towards the horse-drawn transport. Lyn and Arthiel, who helped her up, exchanged glances before following the young boy.

The found him huddled with his sister in the caravan, her eyes screwed shut and hands clasping her brother's tightly.

"What is it, Ninian?" Lyn asked worriedly. "Nils?"

"Lady Lyndis, you're safe," Ninian breathed, taking a deep breath and opening her crimson eyes, turning them to the Sacaen woman. "I sent Lunar…I was so worried that the vision came too late…"

"Vision?" Arthiel frowned.

"Yes," Ninian nodded. "It is…another facet of our powers…"

"You two are just full of surprises," Lyn smiled. "And one of those surprises just saved my life; I must say I'm grateful."

"Do you have them…often?" Arthiel inquired, remembering the two times that she had held Nils or been around him, and some odd vision-like occurrence had surfaced within her mind.

"No…it's just…with Nini's Grace," Nils stated, filling in for his sister. "With Nini's Grace back with us, our power is stronger than ever, and back to its height. Thank you, again."

"Your power saved my life, so I shall call it even," Lyn told him, smiling happily. "Now, I must ask, did you…did you see where the arrow came from?"

"Some…some large wooden contraption," Ninian replied, looking to Arthiel. "It looked like it was built with springs or…something large of the like."

"Ballista," Arthiel recognized, hearing the others make rough plans of attack outside. She left the caravan in a swift movement, and Lyn followed, leaving the two siblings behind. The orange-haired tactician ran to the main group, finding Florina in the blink of an eye. "Florina! Florina, you must stay aground!"

"What?" the lavender-haired girl frowned, confused. "Whatever for?"

"The enemy, they must have a ballista," Arthiel stated. "It is what they used for the attempt on Lyn's life just now. You cannot take to the air."

"She's right," Sain nodded, and Arthiel sent him a '_of course I am_' look. "The ballista would target you in an instant."

"Lord Lundgren is getting serious," Kent sighed. "Deploying siege engines like a ballista is no mean feat."

"I have a question," Lyn pondered aloud, looking to her Knights. "What is a ballista?"

"It's a weapon designed for long-distance attacks," Kent replied. "Devastating."

"Only archers can use them," Sain added.

Something clicked in Arthiel's mind and she turned, her eyes searching the other members of the group. "Will!" she called. He turned away from his conversation with Rath, Erk and Serra came over.

"Yes, Arthiel?" he questioned.

"Will, can you use a ballista?"

"I've…I've never tried but…it's just a really big bow, right? I should be able to figure it out."

"All I can ask is that you try," she smiled, before calling attention to the group. "Alright, Ballista's have a mean range, but they don't have that many shots. So I want my Riders; Kent, Sain and Rath to ride South, and meet the main assault head-on, drawing as much ballista fire as you can. I want that machine drained of its arrows. Will, ride with Rath and get to that Ballista as quick as possible."

"But, someone will be there," he worried. "And no doubt with a guard or soldier or—"

"I will go around while you are drawing their fire and take care of him," Lyn commented.

"But there's Magic there!" Nils exclaimed, coming up to them from the caravan. "Ninian said she saw a Mage and…uh, I think it was a Shaman."

"Alright, so the rest of us will tag along," Arthiel declared. "Serra, Erk and Lucius will go around with Lyn, to face the magic-wielders, and Florina will follow, making sure you stay on the outskirts of the field. Dorcas, Matthew and myself will—"

"Um, Ary, problem," the thief piped up.

"What is it, Matthew?" the orange-haired girl questioned, turning to him.

"I have some minor…business…to attend to," he told her, working his way around the truth. "I'll be unable to join you."

"Something to add to the list?" she eyed him, and although no one else got it, Matthew knew she referred to the list of things he can't tell her yet, so he nodded. "Fine, Dorcas and I will go with the Riders to face the soldiers and ballista."

"What about me?" Nils squeaked. "And Ninian?"

"You'll have Lunar," she replied. The young boy gave her a pleading look, and she sighed, giving in. "Alright, Dorcas, you ride with Kent or Sain, and go with them to face the cavalry. Everyone else knows what they're doing, so let's move out; we haven't got the time to waste!"

The troops did as she dictated, moving out along two different paths. Matthew on the other hand turned along a third, off towards the hills, only to be held back by Arthiel as she grabbed his wrist.

"Matthew," she called his name, making him turn back with a questioning look. He was about to tell her that he wasn't allowed to tell her, when she shushed him. "I don't care that you can't tell me, just…come back safe, okay?"

His eyes soften, and he smiled, nodding. She let him go and turned away, going off towards the caravan where Nils and Ninian awaited her. The sandy-haired thief watched her go, before his smile fell and he walked off, darting through a line of trees and into the distance.

As she reached the caravan and sat on the edge of the back, war cries rung out in the distance, both over the hills, and down along the path towards the village. She sighed, taking a Dagger from her pocket and twirling it in her fingers.

"I'm sorry that Nils had to ask you to stay," Ninian's voice broke her from her thoughts, making her turn to see the girl propped against the caravan wall, soft red eyes staring at her.

"It's okay," she shrugged, patting her wolf on the head as he curled up beside her. "Sorry, Lunar, but they don't feel comfortable with just you watching them."

"It's not that," Ninian laughed slightly, smiling as Arthiel gave her a confused look. "It's just… ever since you helped us rescue Nini's Grace from those men… I've been meaning to speak with you."

"Alright, we'll, we're speaking," Arthiel stated. "What is it?"

"Your memories…you cannot access them, correct?"

"Uh… well… y-yeah…," Arthiel nodded, freezing at the mention of this. "How did you find out?"

"Um, I don't exactly think he'd be pleased if I told you…," Ninian told her.

"Matthew," the orange-haired tactician sighed, closing her eyes for a brief moment. "Why?"

"Have you ever had flashes of these memories come through?"

"Once….or twice…," she nodded, looking towards Nils, who played with Lunar. When she looked back to Ninian, the dancer had a knowing smile painted across her features. "Do you know something I don't?"

"The magic that my brother and I possess, it is pure unlike any other," she revealed. "And ancient. One of the greatest White Magics there are. And even when we do not use it, we sometimes emit small waves of it. Your flashes…they began when you met my brother, did they not?"

Arthiel took a deep breath, hesitating before she nodded. "Yes."

"Since?"

"Only in my nightmares," the orange-haired girl breathed. "And it's always the same thing. But what does that have to do…?"

"Our Magic, the waves that we unwittingly emit every now and then, they are useful for cleansing anything surrounding us of the taint of Dark Magic," Ninian told her, making her eyes widen. "You see where this is going?"

"My memories were blocked by something dark."

"Something of the Darkest Magics. Or else, with the aid of Lucius, my brother and I should be able to cleanse it completely and return your memories."

"But you can't."

"No…which makes me wonder about how your memories were locked away in the first place? I've seen that kind of Black Magic before and…well…"

"May I ask you a favor?" Arthiel requested.

"Of course, especially after everything you've done for us, yes."

"Don't tell me."

"What?" Ninian blinked in disbelief.

"I realize you mean well, and I know you wish to help me after myself and the others have helped you, but there is something I want you to understand," Arthiel sighed. "Whoever did this…whoever has such potent magic to lock away my memories like they did – they can't be good. They can't be any type of good, and… and it means I was close enough to them to be privy to things they didn't want me to leave with. Which is why they were locked away in my mind. As much as I wish to know who I was…and if I ever did anything good, I'm afraid of what I'll find, hidden away in the darkest reaches of my mind. I'm afraid that I'll come out with a connection to… to these people that are after you and your brother. And that…that I won't be able to bear."

The tactician took a deep breath, smiling weakly as Lunar rubbed his head against her hand comfortingly. "I just… I'm doing good, helping Lyn meet family she didn't know she had, and…and I want to keep that feeling. I'm afraid that if I find out that I'm linked to such horrible people, I'll break. I don't want to be evil."

"Arthiel," Ninian breathed, taking one of the tactician's hands in her own. "I understand that you do not want to know, and I shall respect that. I won't try to push you, but know that if ever you want to try…I'm willing to help you unlock your memories. I'm not saying I could, but if being around us awakens flashes here and there, then maybe if we tried, you could get a little more."

"Thank you," Arthiel nodded, smiling sweetly. "You really are kind."

"As are you," the girl replied. "This is why I find it hard to imagine you having any affiliation to the dark men who wish to find my brother and I."

Suddenly, the caravan lurched forward, making Arthiel and the siblings gasp. The vehicle began moving at a slow pace, and wide-eyed, they exchanged glances. Arthiel picked her Dagger off the caravan floor, looking to the siblings. "I'll check."

She hopped from the back, and walked alongside the caravan with swift paces. She reached the corner at the front, and frowned when she spotted a mess of sandy-brown hair that sported a red cloak.

She backtracked to the end, poking her head inside. "It's just Matthew, I'm going to sit up front, alright?" she inquired.

"Yes," Ninian nodded. "We shall call if help is needed."

"'Kay," Arthiel smiled, before darting across the dirty path to the front and swinging herself onto the bench beside the thief. He glanced at her, smirking.

"Wondered how long it would take you to join me," he noted.

"Back from your 'errand' so soon?" she asked.

"Yep," he nodded. "And on my way back I crossed Kent, who was coming to get the caravan. It seems they've already made it as far as the last defensive line on the far side, and have taken the Ballista. So they were planning on having you all join them."

"They progressed well," Arthiel commented. "Has it really been that long since they left for battle?"

"Sort of," he shrugged. "By the way…I have news. And it's not good."

"Go on," she nodded, frowning.

"I passed by the village on my errand, and decided to sniff about for information," he replied. "First, about Marquess Caelin's illness. He really is unwell. He's been abed for three months."

"Oh, no…," Arthiel gasped, hands flying to cover her mouth with worry.

"I heard an interesting rumor about his condition, though. The people believe someone's been poisoning the Marquess."

"He's being poisoned?"

"And this someone…well, everyone's too afraid to mention a name," Matthew scoffed, before smirking. "However, they say that, as soon as the Marquess took ill, a certain noble took control of the castle as though it were his own. I fed a hungry innkeeper some coin, and he gave me a name. The Marquess of Caelin's own brother: Lord Lundgren."

"They know he's the one poisoning the Marquess, yet they do nothing," she shook her head in disbelief. "What…what about the Marquess's loyal retainers? There must be someone in the castle close enough to the Marquess who knows of it, and could give credence to these rumors, right?"

"If there are, they show no sign."

"Are you saying they've been silenced?"

"It's a fair assumption."

"This is beyond believing."

"And the worst news is yet to come."

"There's more?" Arthiel squeaked, eyes wide. She wondered how he could have accomplished whatever task he had to do, and gather all this information in such a short time.

"An imposter's appeared, claiming to be the Marquess's granddaughter," Matthew revealed, making her gasp. "At least…that's the story Lundgren's telling to all who'll listen, meaning that people are waiting for two traitorous knights and a baseborn child to appear and lay claim to Castle Caelin."

"He's trying to stop us anyway he can!" Arthiel groaned, throwing her hands up into the air. "Lyn's mother never brought anything of Lycia when she joined the Lorca, either. So…"

"We have no proof of her lineage," Matthew sighed, shaking his head.

"Wait, what about Lyn herself? Marquess Araphen _did_ say she was in striking resemblance to her mother. That's proof."

"They'll say we found a look-alike somewhere. Besides, most of the group is seen as betrayers of their knightly vows, so our words mean nothing."

"Our only hope is to see Marquess Caelin himself," Arthiel sighed, defeated. "But…we have no plan. We have no sure way of getting in, because once we reach the castle…word will have spread and…and there will be no end to our problems thanks to the troops that will await us."

"Any bright ideas in that brilliant mind of yours?" Matthew asked, smirking. When he glanced at the orange-haired tactician, his grin fell however, because a mischievous one adorned her features. "Uh-oh. I don't like that look, not one bit, Ary. That means you've cooked up a plan, and I'm not gonna like it."

"Matty," she began, smiling innocently.

"Here we go," he groaned, looking towards the sky as the caravan rolled on.

"Eliwood."

The caravan screeched to an incredible halt, and they heard the yelp of a certain wolf, as well as the startled cry of two individuals inside the transport. "Sorry!" Arthiel called, before turning back to Matthew. "C'mon, you know I'm right."

"No."

"He seemed to be sympathetic to our plight," she added, poking his elbow.

His stern gaze never wavered. "No."

"He should still be in Kathelet," she went on, poking him again and sliding an innocent and pleading look onto her face.

"No, I'm not doing it," he shook his head, crossing his arms with opposition.

"Matty, this is Lyn's heritage we're talking about here – her future," Arthiel explained.

"I'm aware. So?"

"So…the only way this will work…the only way any of us will make it through is if we see Marquess Caelin himself. He's sure to know the truth. And…and the only way to do that is if someone of higher stature goes against Lundgren's rumor. Eliwood can. And you…well…you know him."

"Ary, I'm not—"

"_Please_, Matty," she asked, mustering the cutest face she could. "You… with all the things I don't bother you about… all the secrets you're to keep, that I don't question without a second thought… you owe me."

"That's dirty pool," he eyed her, trying to be angry, but failing miserably.

"But it's working, isn't it?" her grin stretched from ear to ear.

"I hate you, you know that?"

"Aww, thanks, Matty, you're the best!" she exclaimed, launching herself at him and wrapping her arms around his neck for a hug. "Now get going, you gotta make it to Kathelet, and I gotta go find the others, which means I need the reins."

"I can't believe I'm doing this," he groaned, turning to get down from the caravan.

"Don't worry, I'll make something up for the others," Arthiel told him. "I won't tell them you know him, or anything. Secret's safe with me."

"Since when do you enjoy lying to them?" he questioned, sliding over for her to take his seat.

"Since I had a great teacher."

"Ouch," he feigned hurt, placing a hand over his heart with a smirk. The smirk fell however, when she kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you, really," she nodded. "In the end, this is going to turn out for the best, I'm sure. And it'll all be because you valiantly went to find and warn Eliwood ahead of us."

"Don't sugar-coat it too much," he snickered, shaking his head and he hopped down from the cart. "I'll see you in Kathelet."

* * *

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* * *

Kent sighed, sitting on the grass and placing his head in his hands, sighing deeply as he leaned back against his horse. He looked up at the sound of the caravan approaching, and spotted Arthiel, which made him smile. She noticed him, and waved, before seeing the large gash in his side that was bleeding.

She quickly pulled the caravan to a stop and hopped down, and ran over, crouching beside him. "Kent, are you…are you okay?" she asked worriedly.

"Its fine," he waved it off. "A small graze."

"You call that small?" she chided lightly, examining the wound. He winced in pain, and she apologized. "Where are the others?"

"Here," Lyn stated as she and the rest of the company arrived from the opposite direction. "He was injured facing a cavalier close to the Knight in charge, so Sain and I sent him away to rest."

"You did well," Arthiel nodded. "This wound is not a pretty sight. Where's Serra?"

"Here!" the energetic healer exclaimed, coming forward and joining them. She too crouched down beside Kent, and shook her head. "That's one nasty wound. Couldn't have been a bit more careful, could you?"

"Those soldiers…I went easy on them," the orange-haired cavalier revealed. "It was my mistake."

"Whatever reason did you have to go easy on them?" Lyn frowned.

"The soldiers…they were of Caelin. And I…I recognized some," he sighed, shaking his head. "Some Sain and I even trained with. I did not wish to hurt old friends but they…"

"They attacked without hesitation," Sain finished, much more frustrated about the ordeal. "They are black-hearted traitors who've joined Lord Lundgren. Good riddance, I say. It just means less resistance at the castle."

"I wouldn't count on it," Arthiel shook her head, causing everyone to look towards her as Serra finished healing Kent's wound and flopped to the ground, exhausted from the healing and the battle.

"Why is that, Arthiel?" Lyn questioned.

"Matthew…he brought some bad news back from his errand."

"And where is he now?"

"Somewhere on the road to Kathelet."

"Kathelet?" Lyn frowned. "But…that's back-tracking. Why would he do that?"

"To find Eliwood," she sighed, receiving more confused looks. "Look, everybody should get comfortable, because I've got a bit to tell, and it's not pretty."

* * *

_--__**F**__i__**R**__e__** E**__m__**B**__l__**E**__m__--_

* * *

"How can this be?" Lyn exclaimed, appalled as Arthiel finished retelling all of Matthew's news and everything they'd discussed in the caravan on the subject – minus the info on Eliwood and Matthew's secrets, mind you. "How can they allow him to get away with this?!"

"They are afraid, and they lack proof," Kent pointed out. "The whisperings of the common people means nothing."

"But…but that…it can't be!" Florina exclaimed.

"Traitors? Imposters? Poison? This is all so stretched," Will commented.

"As stretched as it may be, it is the truth," Arthiel sighed, shaking her head. "My only thought was that if we could reach Marquess Caelin, and show him Lyn, he might see the truth, and things might go well."

"We'd have to get there first," Sain muttered. "Through all the troops that are sure to oppose."

"Which is why I saw Eliwood was our only choice, and Matthew offered to head out while I caught up with the rest of you," Arthiel nodded, her gaze raking the group before her. She locked eyes with Serra, on whose face a faint knowing smile appeared, but neither spoke of it.

"A sound idea," Kent nodded.

"We'll have to hurry, then," Lyn commented, beginning to head for the caravan and the horses to ready her things. "It really is a race against time."


End file.
